
Delight for Liverpool as they Avoid Bayern and Real in Champions League Draw
Liverpool have been pulled out alongside AS Roma in the semi-finals of the Champions League, avoiding Bayern Munich and Real Madrid in the process.
Facing Roma over two legs should hold no terrors to Jurgen Klopp’s Reds, following their win over Manchester City in the quarter finals.
Some had claimed Pep Guardiola’s City are the best side in the history of the Premier League, such has been their brilliance on the domestic front, but they had no answer to Liverpool who ran out 5-1 winners on aggregate.
After the game, Klopp claimed his side could beat anyone.
“If we have a good day we can beat anyone, on an average day we concede cheap goals,” Klopp said, per Mail Online. “We’re still in a development phase, but we’re already a good team.”
Klopp’s statement will be put to the test over two legs of their semi-final, as Roma bring firepower to the table.
If Liverpool are to progress, it will place them one game away from their sixth European Cup triumph – and first since their epic comeback to beat AC Milan in what became known as the Miracle of Istanbul in 2005.
AS Roma are rank outsiders of the four teams, and it could be argued that Eusebio Di Francesco’s side had their final when mounting such an amazing comeback to topple Barcelona in the last eight.
With the likes of Radja Nainggolan and Edin Dzeko in their ranks, they have the capacity to cause another sensation but Klopp will be delighted to have been pulled out alongside the Serie A side as opposed to Bayern or Real.
The first leg will take place at Anfield, on the week of April 24th with the return leg in Rome on the week of May 1.
Real Madrid may feel they have one hand on securing a hat-trick of wins in the Champions League after surviving an almighty scare against Juventus on Wednesday.
After recording an easy 3-0 win away from home in the first leg, Real were expected to cruise through. They had not banked on a brilliant Juventus fightback and it took a nerveless Cristiano Ronaldo penalty in injury time to take them through 4-3 on aggregate.
If Zinedine Zidane’s Real are to make it three Champions League wins in a row they will have to do it the hard way after drawing Bayern in the semis.
The match is a repeat of last season’s quarter final when Real won both legs to progress 6-3 on aggregate.
Real are favourites for the title, with 188BET pricing them up at 3.00. Bayern and Liverpool can be backed at 3.20, while Roma 9.50.
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