Liverpool’s hopes of winning a seventh European Cup are dashed by PSG (Image: Getty)
Liverpool lost 2-0 to the European champions that night, 4-0 on aggregate, and were eliminated from the Champions League at home to Paris Saint-Germain. After being eliminated in the FA Cup and falling just short of the title race, Liverpool only have a chance to qualify for next year’s Champions League.
The Anfield crowd did their part before kick-off, with Liverpool supporters bracing themselves for another taste of that famous European night under the lights. Liverpool chased PSG in the early stages, but the hosts were unable to find the early breakthrough they had hoped for. Instead, it was the French team that came closest to scoring first, when Ousmane Dembele sent a shot from close range over the crossbar. Virgil van Dijk came closest for Liverpool, but his shot was blocked by opposite number Marquinhos. The Brazilian was praising the defense as if he had scored a goal.
Midway through the second half, PSG’s players were celebrating their goal in earnest. Dembele made up for his previous mistake with a classy finish from outside the box and scored on a ferocious counter-attack. Even if they didn’t equalize beforehand, the Ligue 1 outfit ensured it in stoppage time, with Dembele finding the back of the net again to send PSG into the semi-finals.
Given the talent PSG have up front, one might have expected a busier night. Instead, the Parisians were more deliberate in their attacks, choosing their moments carefully. Dembele didn’t have a chance to score, but the quality of his finishing was less so.
They started the game trying to help Liverpool from an attacking point of view, but ended up paying the price defensively. He may be the first full-back in world football to be deprived of a new full-back role by PSG’s attack. But he certainly didn’t enjoy playing there. He was replaced by Joe Gomez at half-time.
This season hasn’t been perfect, but the Dutchman looked close to his best on a night when he had a lot to deal with. They weren’t afraid to get involved in physical battles and came close to scoring in the first half.
Like his centre-back partner, the Frenchman has also been criticized for his performances this season. He didn’t make too many mistakes throughout the 90 minutes, apart from a big tilt of his head towards the end of the match.
Before PSG’s opening game, he showed great activity on the left flank, coming just millimeters from scoring in the second half when the score was 0-0.
It was a much better performance than against Paris a week earlier, but they were constantly exposed to a difficult test against arguably Europe’s best midfield.
Anfield erupted in jubilation when Liverpool won a penalty, but a damp night (both weather-wise and mood-wise) meant the celebrations were cut short. A quick VAR check overturned the decision and the Argentine was substituted shortly after.
Liverpool held out until the second half, but PSG were able to make a breakthrough. (Image: Getty)
He was the man who chased Liverpool to the brink so many times this year, but he missed out on what could have been the Reds’ biggest success this season. Slott’s late decision to move him to right-back didn’t help either.
A great performance was needed, but once again it fell short. If you compare his awkward touch and indecisiveness in the final third to the stylish PSG front line, they are light years apart.
His scores are low, but that’s more a reflection of his coach. What was Slott thinking with this stupid experiment? Indeed, if the striker could only play 45 minutes, the better play would have been to keep him on the bench until later in the game. In fact, he couldn’t contribute to the game at all and got carried away at halftime.
The stretcher was pulled up after just 30 minutes, but little was provided before that.
It will probably be remembered as the match in which Liverpool made peace with the Egyptian’s impending departure. He had tried all the same things he had done before, but the execution was not as shocking as it had been.
Huh? He was brought on at half-time and sent off 22 minutes later. He helped solidify Liverpool’s right flank and played pretty well overall.
There’s a reason he’s the third choice for the centre-forward position. If Liverpool had played either Hugo Ekitike or Alexander Isak in that second half, they probably would have found at least one.
The match should have started. Liverpool’s attack looked more promising after his arrival, given that he was the only player willing to play in PSG’s last line.
I positioned myself and defeated the strange attack.
