Topic: UEFA Champions League. Klopp's got a semi

[Red_Rich]

We have to be realistic with him. Even in the best case scenario where he comes back and features, he still hasn't played in a long, long time now. He'd be so out of sorts.

It'll be great if he's fully fit and able to start the first game of next season. That's all I'm hoping for.

A  tie-winning goal as super sub would suffice.

[dtayl18]

Can we just take a minute to be thankful for the position we're in?

I know, we're Liverpool, this is where we're supposed to be. But 2014/15 ended with a 6-1 loss to Stoke. Fucking Stoke. From 2009/10 (when Rafa eventually left at the season's end) to 2014/15 (aside from the League Cup win and that one amazing half season under Brendan) we were dire for large parts of those six years. Then Klopp arrived and since then has taken us to the Europa League final, two 4th place finishes, a Champions League final, now we're 1 point off the top with 8 games to go in the league and are overwhelming favourites to progress to the Champions League semifinals again. All this in less than 4 years.

We've won nothing yet of course but we've definitely come a long way

couldn't have put it better myself!

[A-Bomb]

Can we just take a minute to be thankful for the position we're in?

I know, we're Liverpool, this is where we're supposed to be. But 2014/15 ended with a 6-1 loss to Stoke. Fucking Stoke. From 2009/10 (when Rafa eventually left at the season's end) to 2014/15 (aside from the League Cup win and that one amazing half season under Brendan) we were dire for large parts of those six years. Then Klopp arrived and since then has taken us to the Europa League final, two 4th place finishes, a Champions League final, now we're 1 point off the top with 8 games to go in the league and are overwhelming favourites to progress to the Champions League semifinals again. All this in less than 4 years.

We've won nothing yet of course but we've definitely come a long way

Spot on mate, he's done very well in his time here with us, i was only thinking yesterday i'd welcome another contract extension, he's the perfect tonic for our football club - i can't think of a better fit out there.

Big games under the big lights of Anfield is what it is all about - would be very special enjoying some silverware with Klopp, i think he's earned that success with what he's build with us. Not to mention he's also a really good bloke and i like it when good guys come out on top.

[JCB]

Have we improved our seeding in this competition yet? That was the whole reason we had the hard group. We surely must have moved up by reaching the quarters. Don't really understand how it works.

If we win the Premier League we get drawn in Pot 1 regardless next season. I recall looking at it in the summer and we weren't far off moving up a stage, however as it's based on points accrued over a 5 year period in Europe we also got dragged down a bit because we were out of it completely in the 16-17 season

It's best to see how far we go in the current comp first before working it out as each game you win counts overall, not just how far you've reached. For example here's the rankings

https://www.uefa.com/memberassociations/uefarankings/club/#/yr/2019

See how Porto have amassed quite a few points this season due to winning all their games in the group stage as opposed to us. As it stands we're 12th with the potential - I think - of going up a spot or 2 if we go all the way. However fail to go pass this round and Man U can overtake us if they get further.

[Charlie Adams fried egg]

Can we just take a minute to be thankful for the position we're in?

I know, we're Liverpool, this is where we're supposed to be. But 2014/15 ended with a 6-1 loss to Stoke. Fucking Stoke. From 2009/10 (when Rafa eventually left at the season's end) to 2014/15 (aside from the League Cup win and that one amazing half season under Brendan) we were dire for large parts of those six years. Then Klopp arrived and since then has taken us to the Europa League final, two 4th place finishes, a Champions League final, now we're 1 point off the top with 8 games to go in the league and are overwhelming favourites to progress to the Champions League semifinals again. All this in less than 4 years.

We've won nothing yet of course but we've definitely come a long way

Couldn't agree more. We're not entitled to anything and I am hugely grateful for the progress that's been made.

[Floydy]

Next we went  to Portugal and twatted them ...............................

[rawcusk8]

Bad feeling United will end up causing an upset. Speed in attack and a physical midfield is what Barca do struggle against match-up wise.

Really need Barca to go through for numerous reasons. Avoid all the drama of a semi-final with United and the sheer pain of going out to them in a semi. Also however crazy it sounds, Barca are the easier game. They are far more suited to us when it comes to match-up suitability. We have the strengths in our game that Utd themselves have to beat Barca, but our backline is of course a level above.

Just hope Utd's backline ends up being their downfall in the tie. We're elite as it gets at the back, and really should cause Barca all sorts of problems if they went through.

erm, how about we beat Porto first?

[Floydy]

On recent form, we should get past Porto. Luis and Phil can take down the Mancs and set up a nice reunion.

We can go all the way this time.

i know it is an irrellavant side show but I would love to show Mr Coutinho what he is missing and what he could have been part of. I'm not bitter would just love to send them packing, The grass is greener around the fields of Anfield Road.

[gazzalfc]

If we beat Porto, Man U beat Barca and Man city beat Spurs then our semi final legs will be reversed. So we would play at Anfield for the 1st leg of the semi and the 2nd leg at old Trafford

[StormyDog]

Going by that you will have a 50% chance of winning.

49.9999998% better than normal then

[Johns_Barn]

Probably should give respect to all the teams at this point.  A lot can change over international break --- we have seen that before.

We need the soccer gods to continue do their work --- the enemy is hubris and conventional thinking.

5 Tasks to Appease the Soccer Gods

Assume nothing
Prepare for everything
Create new songs
Stop running our mouths
Pray for good footy

There I said it.

[Cu Chulainn]

Good draw for us. Won't be easy, but definitely prefer Porto to Juve or God forbid one of the Manchester teams. Porto will be extra motivated after last year, but I think playing home first helps us.

[Scottymuser]

So

For those interested, I have put together some detailed analysis of the situation regarding who could be in pot A/B - the good news is, as far as I can see, it is virtually impossible for us to not be in Pot B if we don't win the league as we are currently in 12th, with only 3 teams behind capable of catching us up if we go out now (Utd/Chelsea/Napoli) - and of the 11 teams ahead of us, 4 teams are almost certainly going to win their league and go into Pot A, with City being a 5th IF we don't win the league, and then of the remaining 6, Sevilla are currently not qualifying for the next seasons (and at least one of Arsenal/Utd/Chelsea if they all catch us not being in it either probably).  I think for us to be in Pot C, we'd have to lose both matches vs Porto, AND:
1)  Not win the league
2)  Have Sevilla get 4th in La Liga
3)  Have Porto not win their league
4)  Have Napoli get 2 more points in the europa, not win it, and qualify
5)  Have 2 out of Arsenal, Utd or Chelsea finish top 4 and win at least 2 games each (and not win Europa/Champo)

Which would give us, Pot B being Real/Atletico/(Borrusia or Bayern whomever comes 2nd) / Sevilla/ Porto/ Napoli/ and then 2 out of (Arsenal/Chelsea/Utd) with us then being the highest ranked team to miss out.

If any one of them doesn't happen, than we are guaranteed of at least the 8th spot in Pot B.

[TepidT2O]

Against Porto we should expect to progress.

But they’re in the quarter finals and they have clearly improved, so we won’t be able to take anything for granted. Clearly a very good side

[spider-neil]

Against Porto we should expect to progress.

But they’re in the quarter finals and they have clearly improved, so we won’t be able to take anything for granted. Clearly a very good side

And they will be motivated after last season. But regardless, you'd rather play Porto than Juve, Barca, or City.

[Sharado]

Against Porto we should expect to progress.

But they’re in the quarter finals and they have clearly improved, so we won’t be able to take anything for granted. Clearly a very good side

Yeah after the initial euphoria I've settled a bit and think they'll come with a gameplan to be much tighter, particularly given an anfield first leg. As supporters and players we can't underestimate them. Need to get a good lead to take to that away leg. They've got Pepe in their side so they won't be shy of the dark arts either.

[Tobelius]

i know it is an irrellavant side show but I would love to show Mr Coutinho what he is missing and what he could have been part of. I'm not bitter would just love to send them packing, The grass is greener around the fields of Anfield Road.

Their entitled fickle fans have already turned on him,seems he hasn't got that famous Barca DNA after all.

Anyway,we've moved on and are becoming better and better and if we manage to get past Porto (who despite last year will still be a tough nut to crack) i really hope we'll face Barcelona as for me late stage ties against this calibre of opposition is really what the Champions League at its best is all about.

[Andar]

Andy Cole wouldn't be very good at poker

https://twitter.com/BeezerJack07/status/1106516030506102784

[Scottymuser]

Against Porto we should expect to progress.

But they’re in the quarter finals and they have clearly improved, so we won’t be able to take anything for granted. Clearly a very good side

But equally, one could argue that they haven't improved (certainly not in the league - last year they got 88 points, 7 clear of Benfica; this year they are on 60 with 9 matches to go, behind benfica by 10GD, and with a slightly harder fixture list - both have Braga in 3rd away, they have sporting at home who are 4th, and Benfica have moreirense in 5th away) - and they are only through to the QFs as they played a mediocre Roma side (much worse than last years) who were in the middle of a nightmare period of dropping points in seria A.  And they had the easiest group ever (the runners up were Shalke, who got 11 points - and they are struggling to avoid relegation in germany!)

[Jm55]

Against Porto we should expect to progress.

But they’re in the quarter finals and they have clearly improved, so we won’t be able to take anything for granted. Clearly a very good side

Have they improved?

I ask this as I don’t know, but if they had gotten Roma in the last 16 last year not us it’s far from beyond the realms that they would have gotten through that and thus into the quarters.

Having had a glance at the league table they won the league last season with the following:

34 games
88 points
18 goals against
88 goals for

They’re currently on the following after 25 games

60 points
15 goals against
50 goals for

So the maximum points they can get is 27, one less than last season, they can only concede 3 more goals to maintain last seasons defensive record and need to score 28 in 9 games to equal the goals scored?

Obviously I accept that they may be turning it on in Europe (I’ve not watched them at all) but the above suggests that they’ve regressed if anything. I don’t have the stats to hand to see how they were doing after 25 games though, so they tend to finish strongly?

[Gnurglan]

I'll be honest. I wanted Porto. They are obviously a good side since they have reached the 1/4, but they were my pick anyway. Can only hope I haven't jinxed anything. Expect us to play Barca in the Semis.

[CanuckYNWA]

Close to a perfect draw in my opinion

1. Porto isnt that far of Travel
2. Home first means we dont have to Travel before the Chelsea game and only after it.
3. If we progress we get to be Home in the 2nd leg unless both City and United progress
4. City didnt get an easy ride
5. Dont have to Play Juve or City till the final potentially if we progress that far

Lets do this redmen!

Also City fixtures for April when Champions League starts will be crucial for them especially if they progress in the FA Cup as they will have an FA Cup tie before Tottenham away

Cardiff (H) or FA Cup
Tottenham (A) - CL
Palace (A) - EPL
Tottenham (H) - CL
Tottenham (H) - PL
Man Utd (A) - PL
Burnley (A) - PL

[Xanderzone]

Won't be as easy as last year. They were a young side but now a year older and more experienced. They'll have a better game plan I'm sure.

That said, was the draw I wanted.

[Byrnee]

Lets do this redmen!

Also City fixtures for April when Champions League starts will be crucial for them especially if they progress in the FA Cup as they will have an FA Cup tie before Tottenham away

Posted in the title run In but might be useful here - as you say - hell of a run for them, about time after some of the draws they've had in the cups this season

[rocco]

If we win the Premier League we get drawn in Pot 1 regardless next season. I recall looking at it in the summer and we weren't far off moving up a stage, however as it's based on points accrued over a 5 year period in Europe we also got dragged down a bit because we were out of it completely in the 16-17 season

It's best to see how far we go in the current comp first before working it out as each game you win counts overall, not just how far you've reached. For example here's the rankings

https://www.uefa.com/memberassociations/uefarankings/club/#/yr/2019

See how Porto have amassed quite a few points this season due to winning all their games in the group stage as opposed to us. As it stands we're 12th with the potential - I think - of going up a spot or 2 if we go all the way. However fail to go pass this round and Man U can overtake us if they get further.

thought with the new increase in prize money it would be over 10 years and would include past glories , {trophies won in Europe}

[him_15]

Can't wait for Suarez returning to Anfield.

[harleydanger]

Christ, scared of United in a Euro semi?

This is our competition, drawing us in a semi is the stuff of their nightmares.

[[new username under construction]]

Can't wait for Suarez returning to Anfield.

It'll be a little odd with one getting a great reception and the other.....ummm

[deFacto please, you bastards]

In regards to Barca not being all that great. They don't have to be, when they have the best goalscoring playmaker on the planet along with Suarez and Dembele , they will cause United massive problems. They did get through against PSG, without Neymar and Cavani, so unless something happense to Barca until then, their chances of going through are much much slimmer than in the previous round.

Messi, like Ronaldo, is totally capable of carrying them.

[ItzdoctorZ]

Love that

Ajax - Juve - 7 titles
Us - Porto - 6 titles
City - Spurs - erm... still looking
Barca - Man U - 8 titles

Other way round,

Ajax and Juve have 6

Liverpool and Porto have 7

[the_red_pill]

Shitcoat at it again, but he seems to love a dig at Pep and his teams whenever he can. He doesn't keep his mouth shut for a moment, does he?:

Former Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho thinks Manchester City have a lot of luck when it comes to Champions League draws.

The Citizens beat Schalke 3-2 in Germany in the first leg of their last-16 Champions League tie to put them in a good position to move into the quarter-finals.

Pep Guardiola’s men overcame Shakhtar Donetsk, Lyon and Hoffenheim to top their group with only one loss and Mourinho has claimed that City have benefited from “lucky” draws.

When asked if City would beat Schalke to progress in the Champions League, Mourinho said: “Yeah, easy, Man City are having a very good season.

“But honestly, they are so lucky in the draws.

“You look at the Champions League… their group phase [was easy].

“And now the tie against Schalke, I would say they beat Schalke and will get Porto or Ajax in the quarter-final.”

 

[Trendisnotdestiny]

Can't wait for Suarez returning to Anfield.

Let's not get carried away.  The soccer gods do not like it when supporters "assume" (making an ASS out of U and ME)...

How about we keep quiet, give Porto some respect and keep working hard on areas where we need to improve?

It was not even a week to 10 days where the meme was that we were bottlers, and we gifted the league to City.  Things change.
And in this environment, they change quickly.

Let's not get ahead of ourselves.

[Mr_Shane]

Aye there is nothing to be bitter about with Coutinho and Suarez. Maybe if we were not in a healthy state. But we are in excellent state. Benn to the quarter finals of the Champions league twice in a row, and challenging for the title. There are more interesting and important things to think about then Coutinho and Suarez not playing for us as we are trying to win a cup or a title

[JP-65]

Latest rankings

[Trendisnotdestiny]

In regards to Barca not being all that great. They don't have to be, when they have the best goalscoring playmaker on the planet along with Suarez and Dembele , they will cause United massive problems. They did get through against PSG, without Neymar and Cavani, so unless something happense to Barca until then, their chances of going through are much much slimmer than in the previous round.

Messi, like Ronaldo, is totally capable of carrying them.

Good points mate.  They are good, and ready.

However, for me talking about Barca, Suarez and Messi now is the karmic equivalent of



Porto deserve more respect, like a fire.  Barca have their own devils to worry about.   

[hesbighesred]

We have to be realistic with him. Even in the best case scenario where he comes back and features, he still hasn't played in a long, long time now. He'd be so out of sorts.

It'll be great if he's fully fit and able to start the first game of next season. That's all I'm hoping for.

Yep. And, honestly, I'm not even really holding out hugely high hopes for that. He went through a fucking horrendous injury, that would have been an absolute career killer even 10 years ago. I've never seen someone come back from that injury without a long, long period of rehab - by which I mean a period of back, playing badly, niggling injury, couple of good games, few weeks out, back, playing ok etc etc. Just look at Lallana for a case in point - he's theoretically been fit most of this season but has had a ton of niggles and only in the last couple of months have there been a couple of appearances which have shown something of his best form.

Having a proper pre-season will obviously help, as will this extra time now to play in u23s and hopefully get a few run-outs from the sub's bench but, honestly, it would be an absolute miracle if he were to genuinely contribute at the level we're at now so soon after coming back. It'll be quite something just for him to get back to the same level he was before by the end of next season, let alone this one.

[vagabond]

Have nothing personally against Coutinho. But I can imagine him wilting under the scrutiny of the Anfield crowd, just like Sterling. There's no reason why we shouldn't take advantage of this.

[Stevie2810]

Latest rankings

16/17 Season will be our Achilles heel for another 3 years yet as long as we keep on performing well in Europe.

[Original]

We should give Suarez And Coutihno hell. Fuck all the back slapping.

[Mighty_Red]

Against Porto we should expect to progress.

But they’re in the quarter finals and they have clearly improved, so we won’t be able to take anything for granted. Clearly a very good side

Yup, it won't be a 5-0 again, but as long as we take them seriously, we will get through. Let's take a lead (to nil) to Oporto this time.