Liverpool now know our Champions League path to the ultimate is taking form after UEFA’s last-16 draw paired us with Galatasaray and confirmed the quarter-final opponents ready for the winner.
confirmed the main points after the attract Nyon, with Arne Slot’s facet travelling to Istanbul for the primary leg on March 10/11 earlier than welcoming the Turkish champions to Anfield for the return on March 17/18.
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“Liverpool will face Galatasaray within the final 16 of the Champions League.”
The identical membership replace additionally spelled out why this tie instantly seems like the beginning of a demanding run, as a result of the bracket has already locked within the subsequent hurdle.
“The winners of the tie will face both Paris Saint-Germain or Chelsea within the quarter-finals.”
Liverpool’s Champions League route is now clear
There isn’t any gentle touchdown within the knockout phases, and the silver facet of the draw has mapped our potential run to the ultimate.
If we get rid of Galatasaray, we’d then want to beat both PSG or Chelsea throughout two legs simply to succeed in the semi-finals.
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Earlier this week, Liverpool’s Champions League image was to Budapest, with the silver facet of the bracket containing PSG, Barcelona, Chelsea, Actual Madrid, Manchester Metropolis, Bayern Munich and Arsenal.
From there, the bracket exhibits a potential last-four assembly with one in all Actual Madrid, Manchester Metropolis, Atalanta or Bayern Munich, relying on how the opposite ties unfold.
That sequence explains why this draw could be framed as a troublesome route, even earlier than we get into the sensible actuality of successful in Istanbul after which ending the job at Anfield.
Liverpool also can take encouragement from the truth that Galatasaray are a identified amount this season, as a result of we now have already confronted them within the league part.
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The issue is that the final go to was not a cheerful one.
What occurred the final time we performed Galatasaray
(Photograph by Justin Setterfield/Getty Photos)
in Istanbul confirmed we had 16 photographs however solely 4 on track, as Galatasaray secured a 1-0 win.
Victor Osimhen’s first-half penalty settled it, and it was an evening the place Liverpool struggled to show strain into objectives regardless of producing quantity.
That context issues as a result of knockout ties usually hinge on small moments, and Istanbul is exactly the type of first-leg surroundings the place management and emotional self-discipline turn out to be as necessary as expertise.
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he would “like to flee Liverpool” on this spherical, warning that going through us now would really feel like revenge however insisting Galatasaray have the combat to deal with Anfield if required.
It additionally connects neatly to the broader dialog round this season, the place Liverpool haven’t persistently hit the efficiency ranges we set throughout the title-winning marketing campaign, even when outcomes have improved in current weeks.
Right here is the draw path because it stands, utilizing the confirmed bracket.
There’s an argument that Arsenal have emerged with the cleaner-looking facet of the bracket on paper, however the Champions League hardly ever follows neat logic.
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If we wish to win this competitors, we must beat elite sides in some unspecified time in the future, and this draw merely tells us we might need to do it repeatedly, and prior to most.
Liverpool’s focus now shifts again to West Ham United at Anfield on Saturday, however the European image is sharp sufficient already to underline what’s at stake over the subsequent few months.
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