Champions League second leg: Liverpool 3-3 Benfica

The usual Liverpool, the usual Firminos and… Konatè: for more info, ask Benfica. Jurgen Klopp’s reserves – who renounces seven starters from 1 ‘- draw at Anfield against the Portuguese, snatching a pass for the Champions League semi-finals. The Reds, already strong with a 1-3 success in the first leg, also took the lead in the second leg thanks to a brace from Firmino and a goal from Konatè, who just a week ago – again against Benfica – had found his first goal with the Liverpool shirt. The Eagles do not give up and win a draw thanks to Ramos, Yaremchuk and Nunez, but they are not enough to overturn the defeat of Lisbon. Henderson and his teammates, on the other hand, will now have to contend with Villareal to try to reach the final in Paris.

Turnover view … City

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Fresh from the Premier League draw against Manchester City – first in the league and +1 by the Reds – Jurgen Klopp leaves most of his loyalists on the bench. The target? To have them at the top, again against … the Citizens, opponents of Saturday in the FA Cup semifinal. Alisson is confirmed between the posts, in defense Matip is paired with Konatè, forward there is the unusual trident made up of Luis Diaz, Firmino and Jota. Van Dijk, Robertson, Alexander-Arnold, Thiago, Fabinho, Salah and Manè remain out.

Reserves to whom?

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The interpreters change, but the goal is nevertheless achieved. In the match at Anfield, Liverpool’s second lines resist Benfica’s offensives: in the 21st minute Konatè scores again with a gore, from a corner kick beaten by Tsimikas. The hosts’ advantage did not last long: two minutes later Nunez passed Alisson with a lob, then the referee stopped everything for offside. At half an hour, however, it was time for Gonçalo Ramos, who sprinted on the offside line and took advantage of Goncalves’ pocket to overtake Alisson.

Firmino show

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After the unsuccessful attempts by Luiz Diaz and Keita, Firmino is unleashed in the second half: in the 55th minute he deflects a cross-shot from Jota into the goal, ten minutes later Tsimikas offers him – directly from a free kick – the ball of the brace. Benfica does not give up and tries to push until the whistle blows, in the 73rd minute they shorten the distance with Yaremchuk who enters centrally, jumps Alisson and kicks in the net when the door is now empty. In the final, Nunez’s turn also arrives, fixing the result at 3-3.