Liverpool touches Champions League final ticket

Liverpool encountered the resilient resistance of Villarreal in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final at dawn this morning. But thanks to the turning points of Henderson and Mane, The Kop still had a 2-0 victory to gain a big advantage before the second leg.

Liverpool went out with the strongest force, with Salah, Mane in attack, while Luis Diaz replaced Diogo Jota in charge of disrupting Villarreal’s defense. As expected, they encountered many difficulties before the crowded football style in the home field, fierce dispute of Villarreal.

Liverpool completely dominated the midfield, with more than 60% of possession in the first 30 minutes. Even Villarreal did not have any shots towards the Liverpool goal, even if it was just for luck. All they focus on is defending, clearing the ball and slowing down the opponent’s tempo.

This image recreates what Atletico Madrid showed against Man City in the first leg quarter-finals. In front of such a defense, Liverpool had to use long-range weapons. But in the first 30 minutes, none of the shots were really dangerous, though The Kop 8 times bombarded the opponent’s goal.

It was only in the 31st minute that the first notable ball appeared. In this situation, Diaz went boldly on the left wing and then turned to shoot from 25 yards. But the ball is still in the control of goalkeeper Rulli.

This situation is not successful, but it helps the strikers The Kop more excited. Not long after that, it was Mane’s turn to have his chance. Receiving the ball in front of the penalty area, Mane shot right away to avoid the opponent’s block. The ball hit the yellow shirt defender’s foot and narrowly missed the wooden frame, Liverpool had a corner. And from the corner, Salah quickly caught the volley, but Lo Celso intervened in time.

The speed of pressing the pitch was promoted by Liverpool in the last 15 minutes. But partly because Villarreal’s defense was focused, partly because Salah lacked the feeling of finishing (had the ball comfortably in the penalty area in the 35th minute but shot into the sky) so no goals were scored.

But when everything was done, the crossbar refused to score. It was Thiago’s long shot in the 43rd minute, sending the ball over the bar. Thus, the score 0-0 was maintained until the end of the first half.

As difficult as in the first half, everything was easy for Liverpool in the second half. No more unlucky balls, Liverpool this time was lucky to go along. In the 52nd minute, after a cross from the right wing of Henderson, Estupinan had a disastrous touch that changed the direction and went beyond Rulli’s reach into the net.

This unexpected goal made Liverpool much easier to kick. Just 2 minutes later, Salah confidently dribbled in front of the penalty area and then poked a slot to let Mane down. Mane’s razor-sharp kick to the toe broke the net. Liverpool leads 2-0 and is full of confidence to crush the opponent. After that, there were still continuous braking phases from the red shirt team, making Villarreal not able to calm down.

With a thin and weak attack, the Spanish representative could not put pressure on the opponent. Instead, they still have to focus on the defensive front.

But in the mentality that was no longer focused as before, Villarreal continuously revealed gaps. 64 minutes, their net vibrated again. Fortunately for the guests, this time, Robertson was offside. Time later, Klopp brought in Gomez, Keita to strengthen the defensive position.

He left Villarreal without a chance despite hitting every attacking player. In contrast, Liverpool leisurely held the ball, mastered the game and brought the match to the finish line with a 2-0 victory, thereby holding a huge advantage to win tickets to the final.

This is also Liverpool’s 9th win in this year’s Champions League season. As such, they set a record when they became the team with the most wins in a season at the continental level, excluding qualifying matches.