Liverpool are ready for the Champions League final after beating Villarreal 3-2 and winning 5-2 combined.
But dramatically, it was.
Liverpool lead 2-0 after the first semi-final at Anfield, but keep going El Madrigal was Villarreal’s best team for a long time and scored the first two goals of the match.
After the break, Liverpool reacted violently and scored three times.
Which team deserves the final ticket?
– Made a big difference
Manager Jurgen Klopp is being praised for the move he took during the break, when Villarreal equalized Liverpool’s lead. The Liverpool coach sacrificed Diogo Jota and threw the shooting star Louis Diaz.
It turned out to be a stroke of genius, and Liverpool completely controlled the match after the break. Klopp praised his grip.
Diaz made a big difference, former Liverpool player Neil Mellor was the referee on Sky Sports.
Liverpool icon Peter Crouch agrees:
– Luis Diaz changed the game. It was amazing as soon as it arrived. In total “It’s a game changer,” Crouch told the BBC.
Thus, it is Anfield FC who can cheer for a final ticket to the Champions League with a 5-2 win overall.
Until the final: Jurgen Klopp can cheer in his third Champions League final as Liverpool coach.
Photo: Jose Britton/The Associated Press
Klopp’s clear message
Liverpool stopper star Virgil van Dijk was tough about his team’s first-half performance when he was interviewed by BT after the match.
We didn’t play football and the first round must be forgotten as quickly as possible.
Van Dijk also reveals Klopp’s words during the break. Words believed to have pushed the team to the heart of the match.
– The coach told us: “You have to play the Liverpool way.” We had to show how much we really wanted to get to the final. The star thought it was a deserved win based on the second half.
Klopp himself says he was upset by what he saw before the break. He’s open about giving his team a clear message ahead of his impressive turnaround.
– They had to start playing football, Klopp tells BT Sports.
Coach Alexander Arnold is also relieved after the win.
We never made it easy for ourselves in the Champions League semi-final, and it was very difficult. They were good at first, but we came together during the break and got the result we needed, Trent Alexander-Arnold told BT Sport.
Double chance
The final ticket also means Liverpool get a chance to recreate the Champions League gold from the 2018-19 season.
Indeed, Liverpool’s season could be historic in many ways, because the red shirts are in a position to win all four of the top-ranked titles this season: the Champions League, the English Premier League, the FA Cup and the League Cup.
Only once an English team has won the ‘Triple’ – the Premier League, FA Cup, Champions League – and that was Manchester United in 1999. Now Liverpool is on its way to surpassing that feat of 99.
Liverpool shock: Villarreal went straight to the guests’ throats in Tuesday’s semi-final.
Photo: Jose Britton/The Associated Press
shocked Liverpool
Liverpool got off to a nightmare-like start to the match, with Villarreal taking a lead after just three minutes over Boulay Dea.
The guests probably did the worst round of the season on Tuesday night, which speaks for itself when we’re in May, and five minutes before the break it narrowed down again. Former Arsenal player Francis Coquelin headed in a 2-0 lead after a beautiful job from former Tottenham player Etienne Capoy, so the two teams were on the same page.
“Yellow Submarine” blew up Liverpool in the first place, Gary Lineker wrote on Twitter during the break.
After 61 minutes, came the 1-2 reduction that put Liverpool back in front overall. Fabinho made sure to score when he sent the ball into goal through goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli’s legs.
Substitute Luis Diaz then put it 2-2 before Sadio Mane rose to 3-2.
Towards the end of the match, the evening turned completely black for Villarreal when Etienne Capoy was sent off with her second yellow.
City or Real Madrid
The Champions League final kicks off at the Stade de France in Paris on May 28.
It will be clear on Wednesday whether the final opponent is Real Madrid or Manchester City. The light blues from Manchester lead 4-3 before the second leg.
Whoever we meet in the final will be a nightmare. The city – we know them – we know how intense these battles are. Madrid is Madrid. I’ll see him tomorrow and we’ll see what the outcome will be, says Van Dyck.
Liverpool’s next game is already playing out on Saturday when Tottenham await a nerve-wracking match at Anfield in the Premier League. Villarreal will meet Sevilla in the Spanish League the next day.
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