MY ACCOUNT
This season’s Champions League has the potential to conclude with a final between Premier League juggernauts Liverpool and Manchester City.
We discuss which of the two sides are best placed to win the biggest prize in European club football.
Luck of the draw
A look at how the draw has unfolded suggests the Reds are in the driving seat.
Jurgen Klopp’s men booked their place in the quarter-finals with a 2-1 aggregate victory over Inter Milan and were rewarded with a tie against Benfica, with the first leg taking place tonight.
And while the Primeira Liga outfit should not be underestimated after knocking out Ajax in the last round, they were perhaps the best opponents the Merseysiders could have hoped for at this stage of the competition.
Should Liverpool get the better of the Eagles over two legs, they will then face the winners of Villarreal’s tie against Bayern Munich — and they should fancy their chances against either side.
Villarreal sit seventh in LaLiga, while Bayern have not been without their faults in their first season under Julian Nagelsmann.
On the flip side, Pep Guardiola’s men face an unpredictable Atletico Madrid side loaded with experience and would draw either reigning champions Chelsea or Real Madrid if they were to progress.
Mind over matter
Getting through those matches unscathed will take something special from City, who have suffered from a mental block in the latter stages of Champions League campaigns in recent seasons.
Only once in the last five years have City gone beyond the quarter-finals — when they reached last year’s final in Porto but fluffed their lines against the Blues.
And that brings us to another area in which Liverpool have the upper hand — experience.
Under Klopp, the Reds have been there and done it, lifting the trophy in 2019 with a victory over Tottenham in the final.
The make-up of Liverpool’s line-up has changed very little since then but with Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota bolstering their options in the final third, they are actually stronger.
Experiencing what it takes to go the distance puts the Reds in an excellent position and it could be the most likely competition to give them their second trophy of the season.
With the Carabao Cup already secured, that eases some pressure on Klopp’s side, who are still in the mix for an unprecedented Quadruple.
While that may elude them, they should fancy their chances of causing a stir in the Champions League, having lost only one match in 2022.
Liverpool look better placed than City, who have tried and failed to handle the weight of expectation on the biggest stage season after season.
