The Liverpool Reds maintained their rank this Wednesday evening at Anfield against Villarreal by winning 2-0 against Villarreal in a match which they outrageously dominated.
The first minutes of the match set the tone with insolent pressing from Klopp’s men in the Spanish camp.
On the other hand, the offensives lacked precision, such as the missed header from Sadio Mané on a cross from Salah (12th), or even Robertson, whose header at the far post touched the outside post of Gulli (22nd).
Luis Diaz was the first to heat Rulli’s gloves with a vicious curling shot that the Argentine goalkeeper struggled to capture in two stages (31st).
Gathered in his camp, the Yellow Submarine relied on set pieces to bring danger to Allison’s cages.
Lo Celso, found at the far post on a free kick from Parejo, deflected the ball over the goal (36th).
The Submarine overwhelmed by the Reds
One of the only two shots of the match for Villarreal in this match is to say the ordeal endured by the formation of Unai Emery.
The Reds could have gone into the locker room in the lead if Thiago Alcantara’s powerful strike had not taken Rulli’s square (42nd).
The Yellows could breathe, at the break they were still in the game.
A situation quickly corrected by the Reds, finally rewarded thanks to an own goal from the unfortunate Estupinan (53rd), whose deflection on the center of Henderson deceived Gulli, too advanced.
Before that, the referee had rightly refused the opener for Fabinho (50th), after Van Dijk was offside.
Boosted, the Reds continued to press against an increasingly cornered Spanish block. Salah took advantage of this wonderfully by rushing into the heart of the defense before serving Mané in the back of the defense. The Senegalese deceived Gulli with his toe to make the break (55th).
In two minutes, Liverpool did the job. And it wasn’t over. Klopp’s men tried to increase the score but neither Robertson (65th) offside scorer, nor Van Dijk (68th), nor Diaz (68th) could provide Liverpool with a more than comfortable mattress ahead of next week’s return match at Villarreal’s Ceramics stadium.
A meeting where Emery’s men will have to radically change their face. At Anfield, they only scored one shot during the 90 minutes through Boulaye Dia at the end of the match.
With a two-goal lead and a completely mastered performance, Liverpool have taken a step towards the final and will now have to finish the job.
Opposite, Villarreal knows the recipe. He has already brought down two European ogres this season, Juventus in the eighth and Bayern Munich in the quarters.
Liverpool would be well advised not to forget it too quickly if they want to join the Stade de France to lift a seventh European trophy.