Key events
Barry Glendenning
While Arsenal were busy Arsenaling their way to a worthy but dull Bigger Cup quarter-final first leg win at Sporting on Tuesday, the players of Real Madrid and Bayern Munich released the collective handbrake and performed many high-speed donuts, wheel spins and Rockfords as a pleasing counterpoint to the careful mirror-signal-manoeuvring on display at Lisbon’s Estádio José Alvalade.
Like a couple of stolen supercars racing each other around a shopping mall in The Fast and the Furious: Bicester Village, these two European heavyweights massively committed to the bit, not unlike a daily football email bogged down in a laboured motoring metaphor.
“When I see the chances we had, that has to give us confidence that we can score more goals,” whooped Vincent Kompany following a hi-octane Bernabéu white-knuckle ride from which his team emerged deserving winners, even if it was their 40-year-old goalkeeper who took home the gong for player of the match.
TNT Sports reckon Liverpool will start with five at the back. Interesting.
Liverpool (poss 5-3-1-1) Mamardashvili; Frimpong, Konate, Van Dijk, Gomez, Kerkez; Szoboszlai, Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Wirtz; Ekitike.
Paris Saint-Germain team news
The formidable quartet of Nuno Mendes, Marquinhos, Joao Neves and Vitinha return to the PSG side in place of Lucas Hernandez, Illia Zabarnyi, Lucas Beraldo and Lee Kang-in. Nine of the ten outfield players started the demolition of Internazionale in last year’s final; Warren Zaire-Emery is covering for the injured* Fabian Ruiz.
Paris Saint-Germain (4-3-3) Safonov; Hakimi, Marquinhos, Pacho, Nuno Mendes; Zaire-Emery, Vitinha, Joao Neves; Doue, Dembele, Kvaratskhelia.
Subs: Chevalier, Marin, Beraldo, Zabarnyi, Goncalo Ramos, Lee Kang-in, L Hernandez, Mayulu, D Fernandez, Mbaye.
* There are reports that PSG regard Fabian Ruiz’s pain threshold as sub-optimal.
Liverpool team news: Salah on the bench
Mo Salah has been left out of the Liverpool starting XI, one of two changes from the defeat at the Etihad on Saturday. Curtis Jones is also omitted, with Jeremie Frimpong and Alexis Mac Allister coming in. Alexander Isak is back in the matchday squad.
Liverpool (possible 4-1-4-1) Mamardashvili; Gomez, Konate, Van Dijk, Kerkez; Gravenberch; Frimpong, Szoboszlai, Mac Allister, Wirtz; Ekitike.
Subs: Isak, Salah, Woodman, Chiesa, Jones, Misciur, Gakpo, Robertson, Nyoni, Ngumoha.
Barcelona v Atletico Madrid is tonight’s other Champions League match. Luke McLaughlin is covering that one.
“One from the rumour mill here,” writes Daniel Stauss, “but my best friend’s sister’s boyfriend’s brother’s girlfriend heard from this guy who knows this kid who’s going with a girl who said Slot would get the sack if Liverpool lose today. Any thoughts?”
I guess it’s pretty serious.
Harry Paterson’s preview
This tie could not have come at a worse time for Liverpool. They were on the wrong end of a 4-0 thrashing against Manchester City in the FA Cup quarter-finals on Saturday, their 15th defeat of the season and their fourth in their past five away games. They beat PSG 1-0 at the Parc des Princes last spring, but a lot has changed in 12 months.
On a more encouraging note, Mohamed Salah, Jeremie Frimpong and Federico Chiesa are available, and the £125m signing Alexander Isak might make his first appearance in the squad since breaking his leg against Tottenham in December.
PSG have a habit of beating English sides in the Champions League. They knocked Liverpool, Aston Villa and Arsenal out of the competition last season, and they swept Chelsea aside last month, winning 8-2 on aggregate. Bradley Barcola picked up an injury in that tie but may return, and Vitinha, João Neves and Nuno Mendes are likely to start having come off the bench in the 3-1 win against Toulouse at the weekend. Prediction: PSG to win the first leg and the tie.
Andy Hunter
Arne Slot has warned Liverpool will suffer another emphatic defeat should they switch off against Paris Saint-Germain in their Champions League quarter-final first leg on Wednesday evening but believes his toiling team can save their season by going “toe-to-toe” with the European champions.
The pressure on Liverpool and their head coach has intensified following Saturday’s 4-0 capitulation against Manchester City in the quarter-final of the FA Cup. Florian Wirtz disagreed with the captain Virgil van Dijk’s damning assessment that Liverpool “gave up” at the Etihad Stadium, but both the £116m playmaker and Slot admitted there can be no repeat of that performance at Parc des Princes.
Preamble
Life moves pretty fast. You don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it. When Liverpool were drawn against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League 11 months ago, they were strong favourites to beat a side who finished 14 places below them in the league phase. Right there, right then, Liverpool looked the best team in Europe – but PSG beat them on penalties after a fascinating struggle and never looked back.
A year on, few people give Liverpool a prayer against the reigning champions, who again seem to be peaking at the perfect time. Liverpool are not so much peaking as lurching; their results this season make a Jackson Pollock look neat and tidy by comparison. After a promising start at the Etihad on Saturday, they collapsed to a 4-0 defeat. If their heads drop as quickly tonight, things could get ugly.
Then again, we thought things were going to get phenomenally ugly at half-time in Istanbul. The Champions League music tends to stiffen the sinews of Liverpool players, particularly when they are underdogs. Arne Slot would love his own little miracle in the city of light.
Kick off 8pm.