Jurgen Klopp managed to suppress his glee as the cameras focussed on him as Liverpool were paired with Roma in the semi finals of the Champions League. The Italians are, after all, the weakest team left in the competition, even after their sensational comeback win against Barcelona. Now, the Reds have a clear view of the final.
Of course, this isn’t to say that Roma have no chance. They are worthy of their place in the Champions League final four and have the quality to cause any team problems, as Barcelona discovered to their peril. Liverpool can’t allow their levels to drop and must be in top form to progress past the Serie A outfit.
“It's Roma now. It will be a completely different game,” Klopp said after his side’s 2-2 draw at West Brom at the weekend. “They have set-pieces as well but they don't play only set-pieces. The ball is sometimes on the ground and then you can play football.” The German coach is right to guard against complacency.
Liverpool must recapture the spirit of their first half display against from the first leg victory over Manchester City at Anfield. They must attack Roma with the same sort of gusto, they must go after them from the very first whistle as they did to Pep Guardiola’s side when they visited Merseyside.
That was Liverpool at their irrepressible best. In that form, it’s difficult to envisage anyone left in the Champions League being able to stop them. If Klopp can find a way to harness that energy and apply it to Tuesday night’s game, then it would be possible to put forward the Anfield side as the favourites to win the whole thing. If they can turn that sort of performance on and off as they please, there might be nobody to stop them.
In the first leg against Manchester City, Liverpool were wary of the need to build up a lead before heading to the Etihad Stadium for the return fixture. They must adopt the same mentality against Roma, taking into account how Barcelona crumbled at the Stadio Olimpico and the comprehensive 3-0 defeat Chelsea suffered there earlier in the season. Liverpool must give themselves a cushion to take to Italy next week.
Any sense of complacency could see the Reds suffer the same problems that they did in the final 15 minutes or so against West Brom. While Liverpool have been defensively sound in recent weeks, the errors returned to their play at the back as they counted all three points before they had been truly secured. Let that serve as a warning to Klopp and his side.
