STAR PREVIEW Weds: Liverpool v Villarreal

Liverpool will have been pleased to draw Villarreal for the Champions League semi-finals, but Unai Emery’s men have proven themselves to be a tough nut to crack in Europe this season and will be hoping to take the advantage in the first-leg on Wednesday night.

The Reds overcame Benfica in the last round of the competition with most of the work being done in the first encounter in Portugal. Jurgen Klopp’s scintillating side raced into a 2-0 lead before the break through strikes from Ibrahima Konate and Sadio Mane.

Darwin Nunez pulled one back early in the second-half, but Luis Diaz restored Liverpool’s two-goal advantage with three minutes remaining of the contest.

The reverse fixture at Anfield was certainly a thriller; ending in an entertaining 3-3 draw with Benfica fighting back from 3-1 down to rescue a result on the night. However, it wasn’t enough with Liverpool the side heading through to the semi-finals.

Jurgen Klopp has close to a fully-fit squad to pick from with Roberto Firmino the only slight doubt after a foot injury kept him out of Sunday’s 2-0 win over Merseyside rivals Everton.

Liverpool v Villarreal
UEFA Champions League Semi-Final 1st Leg
8pm BT Sport 2 / BT Sport Ultimate

HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD
(Maximum 10 matches)
MAY 2016 EUROPA LEAGUE Liverpool 3-0 Villarreal
APR 2016 EUROPA LEAGUE Villarreal 1-0 Liverpool

Villarreal pulled off a massive shock by dumping German giants Bayern Munich out of the Champions League in the last round with Samuel Chukwueze’s late goal sending El Submarino Amarillo through to the semi-final stage for the first time in their history.

After pulling off a 1-0 win at home in the first-leg, many assumed that Bayern would be able to take over the tie on home soil. But Emery’s men stood firm – even when Bayern pulled level through Robert Lewandowski – to pull off a superb result for this year’s Champions League dark horses.

Former Liverpool left-back Alberto Moreno will be not be reuniting with his former side here as the Spanish defender continues his recovery from cruciate ligament damage. A bigger loss for Emery and co, however, is leading striker Gerard Moreno who is also set to miss this trip to Anfield.

Villarreal will be aiming to spoil the contest here by keeping things tight and limiting Liverpool’s chances. I’m not expecting a classic here but still expect the Reds to continue their fine form and, as such, am backing Liverpool and under 2.5 goals and a correct scoreline of 2-0 to the home side.

Also, due to his disciplinary record and combative playing style, Etienne Capoue to be shown a card at 15/8 also looks appealing.

JOE CITRONE

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RECOMMENDED BETS
BACK Liverpool and under 2.5 goals 2pts at 5/2 (Latest Star Price ? CLICK TO BET NOW)
BACK Liverpool to win 2-0 1pt at 21/4 (Latest Star Price ? CLICK TO BET NOW)
BACK Etienne Capoue to be carded 1pt at 15/8 (Latest Star Price ? CLICK TO BET NOW)

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PROFIT/LOSS (APRIL 2022): LOSS – 1.12 points
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