Liverpool were completely outplayed by Paris Saint-Germain last Wednesday, yet they enter the second leg of their Champions League quarterfinal tie at Anfield with a fighting chance of reaching the last four.
Arne Slot’s side entered "survival mode" at the Parc des Princes and somehow escaped with just a 2–0 defeat, despite completely overwhelmed by the holders.
The Reds have a history of mounting memorable comebacks under the lights on home soil, and they overturned a first leg deficit in the previous round to reach the last eight. However, PSG are a step up from the Galatasaray outfit that turned up on Merseyside last month.
After a gloomy few weeks, Slot earned some respite at the weekend, as his team, inspired by 17-year-old Rio Ngumoha, eased past Fulham to boost their chances of securing a top-five Premier League finish. Anfield thus won’t be in a state of anarchy come kick-of, although there are limited expectations for what they can achieve against PSG.
Curtis Jones Likely to Miss Second Leg
“He felt a little bit his groin. It wasn’t the moment—he felt it already for a few minutes,” Slot said of Curtis Jones’ substitution on Saturday. Jones is unlikely to feature in the second leg, having earned a rare Premier League start at the weekend.
The out-of-form Alexis Mac Allister will come back into the fold on Tuesday night, partnering Ryan Gravenberch.
Slot also confirmed that goalkeeper Alisson, recovering from a hamstring injury, will remain on the sidelines this week, with Giorgi Mamardashvili retaining his spot for the second leg.
Liverpool are still working without Conor Bradley, Wataru Endo and Giovanni Leoni, while Alexander Isak has appeared off the bench in back-to-back games.
- ⚠️ Key absentees, doubts: Alisson, Conor Bradley, Wataru Endo, Giovanni Leoni, Curtis Jones
- 🔢 Predicted formation: 4-2-3-1
Liverpool Predicted Lineup vs. PSG (4-2-3-1)
GK: Giorgi Mamardashvili—The towering Georgian helped keep Liverpool in the tie last week, and it’ll take a similar performance for the hosts to stand a chance of progressing.
RB: Joe Gomez—Slot will stick with the back four, but rarely does he deploy his two summer full back additions in tandem. So, we could see Gomez, who played at center back last week, perform a conservative right back role on Tuesday.
CB: Ibrahima Konaté—Slot must be telling Konaté to keep his hands to himself after trying quite literally to push Liverpool to a heavier defeat in Paris.
CB: Virgil van Dijk—Liverpool desperately need a vintage night out of Van Dijk, who will undoubtedly be thrust into some tough defensive spots by this brilliant PSG team.
LB: Milos Kerkez—Gomez’s role should allow the Hungarian full back to fly forward and join Liverpool’s attacks. We haven’t seen enough of Kerkez’s attacking exuberance this season, but he can be a danger when allowed to venture forward.
CM: Ryan Gravenberch—PSG are superb out of possession, with their hasslers and harriers in midfield making life a nightmare for Liverpool’s engine room last week. If the hosts are to get back in this, their press-resistant Dutchman must break the game open by creatively bypassing pressure.
CM: Alexis Mac Allister—Mac Allister has struggled for consistency all season and has generally struggled in these sorts of fixtures. He can’t handle the big spaces that PSG play over, but Slot will likely have to trust him alongside Gravenberch.
RW: Mohamed Salah—Nuno Mendes may be in for a field day, but it’s a risk Slot surely has to take. Salah was back on the scoresheet at the weekend after failing to come on last Wednesday. He’s Liverpool’s all-time leading scorer in this competition after all.
AM: Dominik Szoboszlai—The Hungarian midfielder is a shoo-in, and could reprise the role he performed last season.
LW: Rio Ngumoha—What has Slot got to lose? The 17-year-old supplies some sparkle to a monotonous attack, and if Liverpool are to do something special on Tuesday, they’re going to need to score plenty. The inclusion of Ngumoha gives them the best possible chance of at least instilling some fear into the holders.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Liverpool XI vs. PSG—Champions League Quarterfinal: Injury News, Predicted Lineup.
