Liverpool Hoping For A Miracle At Anfield

In his pre-game new conference before the first leg of his team’s Champions League clash at Barcelona, coach Jurgen Klop joked that it seemed like Lionel Messi was making a “threat” when he predicted that his side would make up for last year’s CL exit in the quarters by winning it all this year. It was no joke.

Say what you will about the outstanding performances of other Barca players last week (Jordi Alba and second half sub Nelson Semedo to name just a few) but it was truly Messi’s game. Whether inspired by his own forecast (or maybe by Liverpool’s James Milner’s aggressive shoulder shove in the first half,) the Barcelona star was unrivaled by anyone else on the pitch on Wednesday night, as it seemed that every time he touched the ball, fans and foes alike had to simply watch in awe. Despite Liverpool focusing their efforts on denying him chances, which for the most part, they did, almost every time Messi got his foot on the ball, something great happened. 

• Beautiful Messi Goal #1: Being in the right place at the right time takes skill, and as we’ve seen time and time again, Messi knows where to be. In this instance, right in front of the Liverpool goal, waiting for Luis Suarez’s shot to hit the crossbar and drop to his feet for an easy tap in.
• Beautiful Messi Goal #2: One of his best ever. A free kick from 30 yards out that left everyone in the stadium and at home shaking their heads in disbelief.
• Beautiful Messi Assist That Should’ve Been: In the dying minutes of 2^ndhalf stoppage time, Messi breaks free, and instead of forcing a shot, lays a perfect reverse pass to Ousmane Dembele, who, maybe he felt bad piling on, hit it directly at Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson. 

Messi worship aside, Liverpool played much better than the final score made it look. Unlike their Premier League companions Man U, who looked fully overmatched in their loss to the men from Catalan, the Reds were able to attack continuously, but were just never able to push anything through, and the few times they let their guard down, Barca made them pay. The question is, will they be able to take their game to the next level Tuesday to take Messi and company down? A few things to note:

• Barcelona rested pretty much all of their likely starters in Saturday’s meaningless loss to Celta Vigo, assuring fresh legs for Tuesday.
• Mohamed Salah joins fellow striker Roberto Firmino on the sidelines with the head injury he suffered in Saturday’s win at Newcastle.
• Liverpool need to win 4-0, or at least 3-0 so they can force extra time or penalties. Unfortunately, Barcelona has only ever given up three goals once this season. 

There are a few ways to bet this match:

• Who you think will go through, for which Barca is the clear favorite at a massive -3335, as compared to Liverpool at +1100.
• Who will win the match itself, with Liverpool the slight favorite at +150, against Barca’s +170.
• Picking the correct score gives you a great chance to win, from a 1-1 tie coming in at +600, all the way up to +14000 for a 4-4 tie. Check all the different odds on picking the correct score here.
• Think Mané or another Reds player will put the team on their back and become a hero at Anfield? Then pick who will score a brace or hattrick with amazing payouts.

It should be a magical night in Liverpool. Good luck to all!