Manchester City shocked by a 3-0 defeat from Liverpool

The mind games played by Klopp prior to this match evidently had an effect on the result of the match. He talked about his team’s strengths and predicted that his team could hurt Manchester City on Wednesday night. Before we look into how that happened, we first have to look into a special moment leading into the match.

The Manchester City bus was attacked by Liverpool fans on its way to the Anfield for the UEFA Champions League clash between the two teams. The violent scenes saw a window smashed and Liverpool FC immediately apologized when they heard the terrible news. The damage was done though because it instilled fear into the City team that was full of confidence from their domestic dominance. The match kicked off later and Liverpool were on the front foot. Roberto Firmino robbed Kyle Walker before sliding a pass to the Egyptian Messiah, Mo Salah, who fired in past Ederson in the 12th minute. Leroy Sane almost provided a quick response to his team when he charged down Liverpool’s defense only to see his miskicked effort going wide. That was the end of Manchester City’s contribution in the first half as Liverpool produced a blistering performance leading to a second goal by Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain who shot past Ederson from 25 yards out. What a hit it was by Ox, leaving Ederson to watch helplessly as the ball whistled by him into the net. City’s defense continued to look in disarray and failed to cope with the intensity of the home side. Sadio Mane headed down the 3rd from a cross by Mo Salah on the 31st minute and that was it for the night. Guardiola’s tactical approach of playing Gundogan instead of Sterling did not pay off as they failed to produce one short on target in the first half. The second half was better by the City side who dominated in possession and forced Liverpool to defend fantastically. Trent Alexander-Arnold went home with the man of the match award after a fine defensive performance at right-back in charge of shutting down Sane. He also blocked Silva from scoring a cross in the second half to ensure Liverpool win without conceding. City have a tough mountain to climb now just like Juventus. Can they produce a special moment in the return leg?

On another front, Barcelona won 4-1 against Roma thanks to two own goals and a goal apiece by Pique and Suarez. Messi had a fine game but the match showed that the player is still struggling with fitness issues.

2018 Africa Women’s Cup of Nations Qualifiers: Kenya draws first blood at home against Uganda

The qualifiers for this year’s continental showpiece of women football kicked off in Machakos, Kenya on Wednesday. Lilian Adera’s 53rd-minute strike was enough to secure a one-goal advantage for the Harambee Starlets over the Crested Cranes ahead of the second leg to be played this Sunday at Star Times Stadium, Kampala.

The right-back, Adera, curled in a beautiful cross into the box which flicked past Crested Cranes’ goalkeeper, Ruth Aturo. The overall winner of this tie will face Equatorial Guinea in the final qualification stage with a victory guaranteeing a spot at the finals to be held in Ghana from 17 November to the 1st of December 2018.

In other fixtures, Ethiopia thrashed Libya 8-0 away from home in a first leg match and Tanzania drew 3-3 with Zambia.

All the qualification matches and results are listed below:

4 April: Senegal v Algeria
10 April: Algeria v Senegal

FT: Libya 0 Ethiopia 8
10 April: Ethiopia v Libya

4 April: Congo v Central African Republic
10 April: Central African Republic v Congo

FT: Kenya 1 Uganda 0
8 April: Uganda v Kenya

FT: Tanzania 3 Zambia 3
10 April: Zambia v Tanzania

5 April: Namibia v Zimbabwe
TBC: Zimbabwe v Namibia

6 April: Morocco v Ivory Coast
TBC: Ivory Coast v Morocco

7 April: Sierra Leone v Mali
10 April: Mali v Sierra Leone

7 April: Burkina Faso v Gambia
10 April: Gambia v Burkina Faso

6 April: Lesotho v Swaziland
TBC: Swaziland v Lesotho

PSL Midweek Round-Up: Sundowns and Pirates keep their feet on the pedal

It is almost set and stone that the ABSA premiership title race down to the flamboyant duo of Masandawana and Amabhakabhaka. On match day 25, Mamelodi Sundowns comfortably beat Chippa United 2-0 at home while Orlando Pirates narrowly got past Bloemfontein Celtic, 2-1. Sundowns were not as slick they usually are against the Chilli boys but two goals from the SA POTY award favorite, Percy Tau and Zimbabwean playmaker, Khama Billiat settled the Brazilians nerves for the meantime, who have Pirates breathing down their neck on the standings. Zambia’s Augustine Mulenga wonder goal was the match winner for Pirates who have now played one more game than Sundowns.

In other fixtures, Kaizer Chiefs climbed up to third with a 1-0 win over Free State Stars courtesy of Teenage Hadebe’s injury time strike. Champions, Bidvest Wits, who were rock bottom for the greater part of the season continued their march to safety with a 2-1 win over fourth placed Maritzburg United. Benni McCarthy’s Cape Town City were stunned 1-0 at home by Golden Arrows and Matsatsantsha’s (SuperSport United) struggles continued they succumbed to a 1-0 loss against Polokwane City with the PSL top scorer, Rodney Ramagelela adding a goal to his tally.

Only five games remain. Who will win the title? Who will face the axe? Feel free to share your thoughts below.

Abroad: Obafemi Martins to sit on the sidelines for the next six or seven months

Nigerian forward, Obafemi Akinwunmi Martins picked up an injury on Tuesday during his club’s Asian Champions League group stage match. The Shanghai Shenhua forward had to leave the pitch halfway through the match due to a torn hamstring as revealed by his club on Wednesday. Martins, 33, will be out for at least six months meaning that he is ruled out of selection to join the Super Eagles’ squad for the 2018 FIFA World cup finals commencing on the 14th of June - a blow to the veteran and perhaps the inconsistent Nigerian frontline.

To literally add insult to injury, Martins’ Shanghai Shenhua did not make it to the knockout stages of the Asian Champions League as a result of that 2-2 draw against Kashima Antlers. A man in form, who grabbed a hatrick in Shenhua’s 4-2 win over Hebei China Fortune on Saturday will have to sit out the greater part of the 2018 Chinese Super League tournament.

The former Newcastle and Inter Milan striker  joined the CSL side at the start of the 2016 season from Major League Soccer side, Seattle Sounders.

South Africa: Sundowns and Pirates continue their title charge

We are spoiled with appetizing Absa premiership matches on the night of the 4th of April. Mamelodi looking to extend their unbeaten run, Orlando Pirates seeking to extend their winning streak and both sides running towards claiming the ultimate prize, PSL league title. Sundowns (Masandawana) return to league action since the second of the match and will be looking to add more breathing space at the top of the standing when they face the challenge of the Chilli boys (Chippa United) whom they have never lost to in 9 league matches, since the 2012/13 season. Masandawana are currently a point above the Buccaneers (Orlando Pirates) with a game in hand advantage. Chippa are currently 11 on the table and most people would fancy Masandawana to get the three points

Amabhakabhaka are tackling Bloemfontein Celtic, who they beat 1-0 in their last time out at Celtic. Pirates will be keen to keep the pressure on the Sundowns especially now that only five games remain in the season. They will be feeling pretty confident, having won seven of their last nine games. The most recent win being a 3-1 victory against their bitter rivals, Kaizer Chiefs. However, Punye Sele Sele can prove to be a stubborn team on their day, having frustrated Chiefs to a 0-0 draw in their last match. They currently occupy the ninth spot on the league table.

Zambia: First team head coach, Nyirenda, dares his employers to sack him

The Chipopolo (Copper Bullets) head coach, Wedson “Weda” Nyirenda feels underappreciated, unwanted and disrespected by the Football Association of Zambia(FAZ). According to a letter circulating in the Football House, Weda highlighted that he would not appear before the Technical team set to review his performances.

The letter reportedly obtained by Times Sports state that Nyirenda was tired of being belittled and that he would be prepared to part ways with FAZ only if they pay their dues to him.

The following is an excerpt from the reported letter....

“The past week, I have been wanting to meet you (FAZ President Andrew Kamanga) but it has not been possible due to circumstances. I want to make it clear that from inception, I was not wanted. It has been so evident in the way my office and person has been disrespected.”

— Wedson “Weda” Nyirenda, Zambia’s National Team Coach

Nyirenda was appointed head coach in January 2017 and has built a youthful Zambian team who has an attractive attacking style of play second to a few on the continent. Zambia failed to qualify for the world under Nyirenda but finished second, ahead of Algeria and Cameroon, in the group won by Nigeria. Their recent second-place finish came to the Four Nations Tournament when they beat 2-0 by South Africa in the final. He is unfortunate not to have silverware to show for his hard work but many can tell he has been building a formidable Chipolopolo side.

“I don’t think there is a need for technical review when you have already judged and made up your minds. You would be doing me a great favor if you terminated my contract. I have been injured for so long now and I am only human. We cannot go on pretending.”

— Wedson “Weda” Nyirenda, Zambia’s National Team Coach

Ivory Coast: FIF plays down Frank De Boer links to vacant managerial position

The Elephants are on the hunt for a new manager to replace the Belgian, Marc Wilmots who left his job by mutual agreement in November. A report by the West African country’s  popular local news website, Linfodrome, suggested that the former Crystal Palace manager, Frank De Boer could be named the Elephants gaffer.

In a statement, the FIF vice-president, Sory Diabate denied the legitimacy of the reports.

"It's no secret that FIF is searching for a new Elephants coach to replace Marc Wilmots. The Federation is working hard on this and will announce the name of the coach in due course." - Sory Diabate, FIF vice-president

The two-time African champions, Ivory Coast, are still licking their wounds after failing to qualify for the world cup finals in Russia. They were also knocked out in the group of stages of the 2017 Total Africa Cup of Nations, meaning a new manager will need to restore the nation’s footballing pride. Whether or not De Boer would be the right candidate, it is debatable, especially after the Dutch got fired by the South London club after losing his first seven premier league games with the club.

Do African nations seem to always looking out to get the least prefered coaches in the most competitive football leagues? Feel free to share your thoughts below.

Russia 2018: El-Hadary eyes historical appearance at the age of 45

The Pharaohs veteran goalkeeper, Essam El-Hadary is hopeful of making into the team’s squad for the FIFA World Cup finals to start on the 14th of June in Russia. El- Hadary, 45, would become the oldest player in history to appear in the world cup finals after Faryd Mondragon of Colombia featured against Japan in Brazil in 2014 aged 43 years and 3 days.

"My age is 45 years old, but for me, this is just a number on paper. I train hard every day, I don't know what the word 'impossible' means. I will keep fighting until the World Cup to have the chance to play and defend my homeland colours." - Essam El-Hadary

The Egyptian shot stopper has build his name on the continent, mostly remembered for amazing reflexes, vocal attitude and penalty stops in the Pharaohs’ three consecutive African Cup of Nations triumphs in 2006, 2008 and 2010. He currently plays for Al-Taawoun FC in the Saudi Professional League and did feature a lot in Egypt’s world cup qualifying rounds, most notably in the 2-1 win against Congo Brazzaville that sealed their spot.

When asked about what he thinks of their group stage opponents in Russia, he said;

"All the teams in our group are very strong. Saudi Arabia is an Arabic team and our matches with them will be very interesting, so it will not be easy.Russia will play in front of their fans and in their grounds, and when you talk about Uruguay you talk about an amazing team and big names like Edinson Cavani and Luis Suárez, so it will not be easy at all." - Essam El-Hadary

Even with so much respect for an opponent, we have to know El-Hadary to be a competitor and certainly a winner. June promise to produce nothing but fireworks.

Chelsea draw at 1-1 Arsenal

Arsenal Ladies hosted Chelsea Women on Sunday and were hoping to reduce the gap between them and the leaders, Chelsea. Their intentions, however, did not translate to their performance, at least not early in the match as they conceded to a Fran Kirby goal. Kirby finished off the opener from a Ramona Bachmann’s pass. This is all thanks to a poor clearance from by the Arsenal goalkeeper, Sari van Veenendaal, who gifted the ball to the Swedish striker. This gave a wakeup call to the Arsenal team who started attacking more and saw efforts by Beth Mead and Vivianne Miedema saved by the Chelsea goalkeeper. Later on, Lindahl could barely do anything when Mead started running from the halfway line and finished past the goalkeeper with a Messi-like goal. That was not the end of it. The match saw Chelsea having a late attempt to claim victory ahead of Arsenal through substitute Cuthbert from 15 yards out but she was denied by Van Veenendaal. The result gave the chance to Manchester City Women to move level on points with Chelsea but they crumbled to a 2-0 defeat at the hands of mid-table Reading against all odds. Chelsea lead the league with 29 points, Manchester City Women are in second with 26 points and Arsenal Ladies are in 4th with 21 points but are still yet to play their 2 games in hand. Will the Arsenal Ladies manage to catch up with Chelsea who are undefeated in the league so far?

Olympiakos President banishes First Team players

On a night when Bayern Munich came from behind and won 2-1 against Sevilla, the buzz around the UCL couldn’t have been better. However, we had to look elsewhere and find out about the most interesting stories in football that happened in the past few days. Evangelos Marinakis had sacked three managers before Olympiakos slipped to third following a 1-1 draw with mid-table Levadiakos in the Greek League. This was because he believed the managers were at fault for the team’s poor performances this season but that did not last forever. He realized that his players were the ones who were not doing enough. In case you were wondering what happens to football players when they do not perform to their expectations, the President of Olympiakos has two ways of dealing with the problem. First, you banish them from playing for the first team. Marinakis banished his first-team players for the remaining 4 games and replaced them with youth players who love Olympiakos and the supporters much more than they do.

He is quoted to have said that, “[You care more about] your nice houses, your cars. You don’t care about the team. I and the rest of the fans have tolerated you for long enough. You will leave today and go on holiday.”

This is one of the most humiliating things that a player can go through during his playing career. The players have been forced to step aside and watch the young boys take charge. Next up, the president also fined the players. It is believed that he fined them $492 000 as a punishment. Olympiakos won the league 19 times in the last 21 years. They are used to dominating in football which explains their president’s harsh reaction. Do you think this is a fair punishment for the players?

Ronaldo sinks Juventus in first leg

Cristiano Ronaldo was the star of the show as Real Madrid defeated Juventus 3-0 away from home. The Portuguese forward scored two goals and turned provider to Marcelo’s goal against 10 men Juventus. The defending champions are now looking more like a hungry team ready to defend their title after seeing some poor performances on the domestic front in the early parts of this season. They dispatched Paris Saint-Germain in the last round and have already put one foot into the semifinals with a convincing win on Tuesday night. As FirstTouch Football, we divided the match into 5 talking points.

1. Luka Modric’s performances – The Croatian midfielder did not have the best of games against the Old Ladies. He was at fault for many counter-attacks by Juventus because of his careless passes. It was not Modric’s night as the player looked tired until he was replaced on the 81st minute by Kovacic. Much respect should be given to Zidane for playing Isco in the match otherwise it would have been shambles in midfield had Modric not gotten an extra player to help him in midfield. His performance was typified by his last kick of the match when he missed a chance in acres of spaces from a Marco Asensio cross. We hope this does not mark the decline of an ageing player who has been crucial to Madrid’s dominance in Europe for the past 2 years.

2. Ramos to miss second leg – Real Madrid Captain Sergio Ramos picked up a yellow card in the match after fouling Paulo Dybala and was given a yellow card for the second time running which means that he will miss the second leg of the clash with suspension.

3. Ronaldo – a clinical finish in the 3rd minute gave an early lead to Madrid who were playing unconvincing football. He later on scored an overhead kick for his second which gave Madrid a two goal cushion. Do you, if ever, recall Ronaldo scoring a beauty like this one before?

4. Red card – Paulo Dybala picked up a second yellow card for a stupid foul on the 64th minute and was given his marching orders. This killed the morale of the team who were fighting even with two goals down. The red card gave advantage to Real Madrid who scored the third goal through Marcelo who finished off Ronaldo’s defense splitting pass.

5. End of match – a 3-0 result has all but confirmed Madrid’s qualification into the next round unless Juventus provide a miracle and win with a 4-goal advantage which is looking unlikely.

Champions League Quarter-Final Overview: Liverpool vs Manchester City

Key Points

• Arguably the best game of the Premier League season will now be a two-legged affair in Champions League Quater-Final.

• Klopp vs Pep. Historically, Klopp’s teams have always caused Pep’s teams problems and this tie will be no different. Both teams come into this game in wonderful form and full of confidence.

• Mohammed Salah and Kevin De Bruyne have been standout players this season for both of their clubs, but Firmino and Silva will most certainly also play key roles
  over both legs.

The African connection of Mane and Salah brushed aside their opposite numbers in Porto’s colors. Algeria’s Brahimi and Cameroon’s Aboubakar were not too happy after Mane scored a hat-trick with Mohamed Salah also getting on the scoresheet in their 5-0 aggregate win for a place in the Quarter-Finals.

Liverpool is the only club remaining in the last eight with a flourishing African partnership. The Reds have had to largely bank on EPL leading scorer’s goals, Mohamed Salah, who has done nothing but smash records. They currently sit third in the English Premier League standings and will be keenly looking out for Salah and his side-kick Mane to show up and finish the team’ chances. Liverpool knows a lot about their Quarter-Final opposition, Manchester City, being the only team to have inflicted a defeat on them in the EPL title race with Mane and Salah both scoring in that encounter.

They did it once, can they do it again and give Liverpool fans some long forgotten silverware? I honestly love my African brothers, but I do not see Pep Guardiola losing this one.

Champions League Quarter-Final Overview: Barcelona vs Roma

Key Points

• Messi is indispensable as he proved again over the weekend. Although he clearly is not 100% fit, Roma could have difficulties in the first leg in the Camp Nou.

• Dzeko has been the standout performer for Roma, also proving himself vital over the weekend helping his team to a 1-1 draw against Bologna. He will need to play well if Roma have any chance to advance in this tie.

• With Dembele slowly growing in confidence, and Busquets returning from injury, Barcelona will feel confident ahead of this first leg at home.

The Italians are one of the introverts of this tie. To be fair, they have not been really convincing but got the job done. The She-Wolf scarcely got past Shakhtar Donetsk on away goals rule after a disciplined 1-0 victory in the second leg. What matters now at this stage of the competition is experience and boy do they have plenty. Boasting of a line-up with the likes of Edin Dzeko, Stephan El Shaarawy, Kolarov, De Rossi, Radja Nainggolan only to mention but a few - Roma can frustrate anyone on a good day. Let us not forget how their 3-0 thrashing of Chelsea in the group stages, topping a group also occupied by Atletico Madrid.

But will they really prevent Messi from giving us another plat du jour? Goalkeeper Alisson Becker should better keep his legs closed at all times.

Champions League Quarter-Final Overview: Real Madrid vs Juventus

Key Points

• Will Bale or Isco start? Based on the pattern of Zidane’s choices for starting XI’s in Champions League games, it looks like Isco is set to start for Madrid in what will certainly be a tense affair in Turin.

• Despite losing in last season’s final, Juventus did defeat Real Madrid the last time these two sides met over two legs.

• Cristiano was rested at the weekend and will most surely be a decisive player if Madrid are to take away a good result for the second leg in Madrid.

• Juventus will be feeling confident after defeating AC Milan in the league 3-1 at the weekend. Dybala looks to be back to his decisive best after a bit of an injury spell earlier in the year.

• Allegri vs Zidane will be an interesting tactical battle. Zidane did well to out guise Emery last round, but Allegri also did well in his tactical battle with Pochettino.

Firstly, I was wrong. I wrote about how the Real Madrid train was going to be stopped dead by the tie’s initial favorites, PSG. The Neymar-led Parisians had blown all of us away in the 2017/18 UEFA champions league group stages, finishing top of the group they shared with Bayern Munich and scoring a record number of goals. But the round of 16 came and the Los Blancos who had a difficult start to their La Liga campaign completely annihilated the Parisians. In fact, they seemed to have effortlessly blew away the PSG smoke, beating them 5-2 on aggregate. The champions league spirit of Ronaldo who bagged a total of three goals in both legs reminded us that the most successful club in Europe cannot be judged on their league form alone.

Next, they face the challenge of the increasingly unpredictable Juventus. The Old Lady produced a miracle at Wembley. They maturely responded to a first leg bullying by Tottenham taking the game to Spurs in the final 45 minutes of the match. Sitting pretty at the top of the Serie A league table right now, Allegri’s men will be confident of avenging last year’s 4-1 humiliation by Madrid in the final. Both Spanish sides Real Madrid and Barcelona may be the prohibitive favorites, but this will be Spain’s best against Italy’s best.

Champions League Quarter-Final Overview: Sevilla vs Bayern Munich

Key Points

• Bayern will be brimming with confidence after demolishing Dortmund in Der Klassiker over the weekend.

• Sevilla may feel hard done by their result against Barcelona after conceding two late goals from a winning position of 2-0.

• Heynckes will have seen what happened to Mourinho and Manchester United last round after leaving Seville with what was seen as a cautiously optimistic 0-0 draw.

Fortune favors the bold they say. But whether or not the Bavarians have been bold, it’s debatable. What’s not debatable is that they have been favored somehow, perhaps by the gods of the UCL draw. Bayern Munich played Turkish side Besiktas which they embarrassed 8-0 on aggregate and now they play Manchester United's hangman, Sevilla, who have looked inconsistent at best this season. In truth, they can actually beat anyone on their day. The Manchester club had to force a 0-0 draw at Sevilla after some superb shot stops by goalkeeper David De Gea and two late strikes by Ben Yedder at Old Trafford ensured the red devils would fall again at the hands of a Spanish opposition.

Over the weekend, Sevilla almost humbled UCL and La Liga title favorites to their first defeat of the Spanish League only to make some mistakes in the final 4 minutes and walk away with a point. I am tipping Bayern Munich to walk away with this one but it won’t be as easy as most people anticipate.

Colombia: Footballs are worth more than rifles; a case of the reintegration of ex-rebels.

After over 50 years of civil conflict between the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC in Spanish) and the Colombian government, a peace agreement was signed in November 2016. Wounds inflicted over decades, marked by bloody massacres, kidnappings, extortions and intense fighting are now being slowly healed by the power of sport through football. A lot of young people recruited into the FARC at ages of 17-20 who had their dreams of playing professional football dashed at the time are believing again. In fact, even during the period of the huge turmoil, they would still sacrifice to play football.

““We would carry 70 kilos [154 pounds] on our backs and walk up to 30 km [19 miles] a day upon the mountains. The first thing we would do before camping would be to clear a field with our machetes so we could play soccer. Sports have always been part of our guerrilla way of life.””

— An interviewee who has always been a soccer aspirant

After the peace agreement, close to 7, 000 former rebels are now organized into 26 transitional settlements who are run by the former commanders. Both men and women’s football teams have been neatly set up. From time to time, they play friendly matches with other villages, both civilian and other former rebels’ villages. As the ex-rebels await approval from Dimayor (Colombia's professional soccer authority) to include two B division teams, one for men and the other for women to make their footballing dreams a reality; they remain self-sustained.

The former rebels sell rifles to cover tournament travel costs and buy soccer equipment. At times they still travel for kilometers in metal boats for matches in distant villages, players, and supporters alike. The feared former FARC commander sees sports as well to reintegrate into civilian life and win hearts again as talks of forming a democratic political party continue.

““We’ve started to see an increase in local communities participating in sports events. Soccer is a way for us to win hearts and minds. For example, women’s soccer teams’ participation has increased. The fact they see our [FARC] women play has empowered women in these remote communities to organize and play.” ”

— The Former FARC Commander

The transitional residences are a hive of activity ranging from late night briefings on the peace process, internal issues, world global news; tutoring and jobs to maintain the living conditions. The close to 7, 000 demobilized rebels receive monthly food rations and 700, 000 Colombian pesos(around USD $250) payment each, from the government to purchase essentials.

During the time of the visit by ESPN journalists, one ex-rebels team were in an ecstatic mood after beating 94th Infantry Battalion of the Colombian Armed Forces, 11 - 5. They once met on the battlefield but now go toe to toe on the soccer pitch. The former rebels continue to wait for more support from the government and integration into civilian life is not slowing down for the beloved sons and daughters of Colombia.

Bayern hunting for their Treble

Bayern’s domestic dominance is so thorough that the UEFA Champions League is more significant to the club and its fans. They are chasing the dream of winning the treble again which they managed to win back in 2013. Where is this buzz coming from, you may ask? This is because of the fact that the man who led them to glory in that year, Heynckes, is the very same person who took over from Ancelotti this season and has brought back the confidence and the swagger to the dynamic Bayern Munich team. Heynckes marked his last season in football with a famous treble for the German champions before he retired. The club had to beg him to come out of retirement and help their club one more time since they could not find a more suitable replacement for Ancelotti. They have not been disappointed. The coach has since seen his club dominate with a league title almost certain to be sewn up in early April while a cup semifinal is a few weeks away. They have now focused their attention towards dispatching Sevilla in the quarterfinals of the UCL. The club is looking to build up on their last win against local rivals Dortmund whom they humiliated in a 6-0 win on Saturday. Sevilla however, are also focused on fixing their defensive problems after surrendering a 2 goal lead to Barcelona and were on-course to become the first team to beat the Catalans in the league this season. Both teams have been performing well this season and this will be an interesting clash. Will Heynckes succeed in claiming another treble this season? Only time will tell.

Klopp hopefull ahead of Champions League date with Liverpool

As the debate about Salah vs De Bruyne for Player of the Year brews up, the Champions League could not bring a better opportunity to evaluate the two players up close in a more competitive tournament. The two have been outstanding this season with Salah leading the scoring charts and De Bruyne likewise leading the assist charts. Both players have been crucial to their team’s performances this season and Manchester City are looking the more threatening team ahead of the tie against Liverpool. Jurgen Klopp spoke to the media today with a message of warning to Guardiola and his team that his team can hurt them. Manchester City travel to Anfield on Wednesday and Klopp is looking to make things as uncomfortable as possible for the Premier League Champions Elect. The Liverpool manager is basing his argument on his high-pressing style of play which often gets the opposition to panic and lose the ball in dangerous areas. It will be interesting how this would affect a City team that is based on Pep’s principles of playing the ball from the back.

Klopp is quoted to having said, “The way we attack the opponent, the way we defend high is unpleasant (four our opposition). If we do that they will have some difficulty coping with it.”

It is clear that the Liverpool manager is trying to play mind games ahead of the clash and it is such a shame that the master of mind games, Jose Mourinho, and his team are already out of the competition having been knocked out by Sevilla in the round of 16. It is important to note that Liverpool once suffered a heavy 5-0 defeat at the hands of this Manchester City team in September and they will be looking to redeem themselves once more after being the first team to defeat Guardiola’s team in the league with a 4-3 win in January. Klopp is expecting more goals. We are expecting many goals in this clash. Brace yourself for one of the juiciest clashes in the UCL.