Liverpool 2-0 Villarreal: Match Statistics
Two minutes and eight seconds. That was all it took to turn a sticky night into a spectacular one for Liverpool.
They’re not there yet, but Jurgen Klopp’s side are now overwhelming favourites to reach their third Champions League final in five seasons, after seeing off Villarreal 2-0 in their semi-final, first leg at Anfield on Wednesday night.
Quick-fire strikes from Jordan Henderson and Sadio Mane did the damage for the Reds, who, for 45 minutes, had looked as if they might find Villarreal’s ‘Yellow Wall’ as puzzling and as frustrating as Juventus and Bayern Munich had before them.
Those two giants had fallen, but it would be a surprise if Liverpool were to go the same way now, even if they still have to finish the job in Spain next week.
This was a convincing, dominant performance from Klopp’s men, who still have that unprecedented quadruple firmly within their sights.
Unai Emery sent his side to annoy, but the gulf in quality between the two sides was evident throughout.
Liverpool’s biggest annoyance, in fact, will be that they didn’t finish the tie here. They certainly had the chances to do so.
In the end, a two-goal cushion will do them.
It came courtesy of a piece of good fortune, Henderson’s clipped cross from the right drifting over the head of Geronimo Rulli, the Villarreal goalkeeper, and into the net, and from a piece of elite attacking quality, Mo Salah finding the perfect pass for Mane, who found the perfect finish for 2-0.
Emery’s side looked shell-shocked.
They had conceded only two goals in four games against Juve and Bayern, but suddenly they had shipped two in the blink of an eye, Liverpool’s relentless intensity too much even for a team designed to, in the words of their manager, “suffer without the ball” for long periods.
They certainly did that here.
Liverpool had almost three-quarters possession, took 19 shots and forced 10 corners. Ibrahima Konate and Virgil van Dijk spent more time in the Villarreal half than in their own, while Alisson Becker was a spectator for the most part.
Safe to say, it wasn’t the ding-dong we saw at the Etihad on Tuesday night.
The result, though, is what is important, and Liverpool will certainly be backed to finish the job in six days’ time, even if they must first negotiate a tricky Premier League trip to Newcastle on Saturday lunchtime.
They had all the quality here, the tone set by Thiago Alcantara’s probing and Luis Diaz’s pressing. What a pair of signings those two are turning out to be, players of pedigree and desire and class.
Throw in Mane, who again led the line superbly, and Salah, who didn’t score but created havoc with Henderson and Trent Alexander-Arnold on the right, and you have a potent combination.
The night finished as it had started, with The Beatles playing on the Anfield PA system.
It was ‘Yellow Submarine’ before kick-off, a nice touch given the opposition, but it was a different tune being belted out by the end.
‘I Feel Fine’ has become the soundtrack to Liverpool’s season, and no wonder.
They're so glad, that Jurgen is a red, and come the end of next month, these fans, and this team, could have everything they ever dreamed of.
