England’s Top Flight off to a bad start in UCL Round of 16 – What we learnt

This is one of few clubs who could actually do the job to knock Liverpool off their European perch. Yet, they won’t do it with the same type of performance as they put in on Tuesday night past.

If they go up, they will have breathing room to sit back and do exactly what they were doing for 90 minutes of football. And again, it will not be fun to watch. If they don’t, they will fail in stopping the Reds at Anfield. Any manager to ignore the power of Anfield must learn the hard way.

The team from Spain’s La Liga title run is over by now with them 13 and 12 points afloat from leaders Real Madrid and second-placed Barcelona, respectively. From the three La Liga fixtures from then to now, they face the team who sits at the very bottom of the Spanish log, Espanyol.

Afore and after the Espanyol clash, they play two clubs competing against them for fourth place in the Spanish standings. Their Champions League spot is under threat by both, Villarreal and Sevilla. The latter on the same points as Atletico and the former, two points off.

There is no way Diego can rest his players while Klopp has the luxury of keeping key players ready for the next meeting. This is what is making this encounter so unpredictable.