The first two legs of the Champions League semi-finals have been played with an advantage to two Premier League clubs, Manchester City and Liverpool leading. Next week two big legs in Spain will determine which two teams will face off in the Champions League finals.
Liverpool got a deserved result and is looking confident heading into the next knockout tie in Spain. However, it's good to know that they haven't won a Champions League knockout tie at Anfield since they lost against Barcelona in 2019 in the semi-finals. But, this time, history did not repeat itself. All respect to Villarreal, they are not Barcelona. Villarreal defended great in the first half, which saw a 0-0 draw at halftime.
However, in the second half, Liverpool got their breakthrough goals while breaking down Villarreal's defense Fabinho had a goal disallowed even before Henderson's attempted cross that took a crucial touch off Estupinan at the start of the second half and a goal by Sadio Mane to extend the lead. The wealth of attacking riches presently at Klopp's disposal makes it almost hard for a team to sit out and try to keep them away simply.
Liverpool got the win; however, two goals were clear with 35 minutes left, not scoring more was shocking. If they got to score more goals, they might be able to rotate and rest players towards the leg in Spain. However, much determination and strength are needed for a team chasing the quadruple. Unai Emery Villarreal is a great team that has done wonderful things to reach the semi-finals, but Manchester City has the tougher tie in the Champions League stage with all respect to Villarreal.
Klopp and Liverpool will take nothing for granted, but with their current form and confidence, it will be exciting to see how even Villarreal, who are known for their tenacity, can catch them. They have knocked out two time European winners Juventus in the round of 16 and six-time European winners Bayern Munich who recently won in 2020.
Liverpool will be hoping to keep their quadruple alive next week in the second leg of the Champions League Semi-final. Liverpool won the competition on six occasions. With success in 1977, 1978, 1981 and 1984. After a long dry spell, they won a memorable game against AC Milan with an amazing comeback in 2005 before winning a sixth title against Tottenham in 2019.
Manchester city hosting Real Madrid at the Etihad was a seven goal thriller with emotions and fight in the first leg from the Los Blancos. Manchester City aims to go to the Champions League final again against Chelsea last year, which ended in a loss. Benzema had an excellent Panenka left the tie for hope for Real Madrid with the Los Blancos chasing their 14th title. Manchester City will be heading to the Bernabeu, firing everything they got. Just how they did in the first leg with an excellent performance from Bernardo Silva and Kevin De Bryune. They had some hiccups which didn't allow them to score more goals against Real Madrid. This shows that Manchester city has a Striker problem, and they have been actively pursuing Erling Haaland and signed Julián Álvarez from River Plate to solve this.
Real Madrid cannot be counted out when they have Karim Benzema, who scored 40 goals in 41 games this season. Vinicius Junior is also a huge threat to lookout as well. Furthermore, Manchester City can do the same again and score more goals in Spain. They are that good of a side with the quality and experience if they take their chances properly. They were the better team in the first leg, but it's important to remember that these missed chances will hurt you if you do not put away your chances against a team like Real Madrid.
Real Madrid has won the trophy the most in Europe, 13 times, with their first win in 1956. Their most recent successes came in the late decade, winning in 13-14 and claiming three in a row between 2016-2018, which showed dominance on the European stage. On the other hand, Manchester City has never won the Champions but was a finalist in 2021.
Next week in Spain will be an exciting tie to watch for all teams in the semi-finals, two English and Spanish teams in the Semi Finals to prove who is the best is a great match on the European stage.
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