Liverpool progress to Europa League Quarter-Finals

Anfield was in full voice as Liverpool beat Sparta Prague 6 - 1 on the night, and 11 - 2 on aggregate, to progress to the Quarter-Finals of the Europa League.

• Jurgen Klopp makes four changes from the team that played Man City on Sunday, with Salah starting
• Bobby Clark makes his first start in a European match
• Nunez scores after 6 minutes, passing the ball into the bottom corner
• Liverpool scored two in a minute, as Bobby Clark scored straight from the kick-off
• Salah scores after 10 minutes, setting a record after scoring 20+ goals in seven consecutive seasons
• Gakpo makes it four in just 14 minutes
• Sparta gets on the scoresheet when Birmancevic scores near the end of the first half
• HALF-TIME - Liverpool 4 - 1 Sparta Prague
• McConnell, Tsimikas, and Elliott come on at halftime, with Endo, Nunez, and Gomez going off
• Szoboszlai scores Liverpool's fifth just after halftime
• Gakpo diverts Elliott's shot for Liverpool's sixth
• Quansah earns a yellow card for a sliding challenge, with Klopp also cautioned by the referee for protesting the decision
• Mateus Musialowski comes on for his Liverpool debut
• FULL-TIME - Liverpool 6 - 1 Sparta Prague

Liverpool produced a blistering start against Sparta Prague, scoring three goals in the opening ten minutes, with Nunez, Clark, and Salah all scoring as Liverpool booked their place in the Quarter-Finals of the Europa League.  Cody Gakpo then added a fourth with only 13 minutes on the clock, as Liverpool threatened to run riot at Anfield.

Before kick-off, the main talking point was why Klopp had picked so many of his senior players, but those arguments were quickly silenced as Liverpool cut Sparta Prague to shreds with every attack.  Indeed, it was the start Klopp would have dreamt of, giving him the freedom to substitute his star players at will as the game wore on.

Not surprisingly, the pace of the game dropped after the early goals, with Liverpool happy to pass the ball around, whilst Sparta Prague was happy not to concede any more goals.  Bobby Clark almost scored his second of the game after a lovely dart into the penalty area, but saw his shot beaten away by the keeper before Darwin Nunez scuffed over from a Salah cutback.  Then in the 41st minute, Sparta pulled a goal back, when Birmancevic raced onto a through ball, with the Liverpool centre-backs caught out of position.

Not surprisingly, Klopp made several changes at half-time. Still, the tempo of the game was not affected, as Liverpool started positively once again, with Szoboslai scoring the Red's fifth goal, three minutes after the break.  Liverpool were not finished though, as Szoboszlai and Elliott went close before Gakpo diverted a Harvey Elliott shot into the bottom corner, to make it 6 - 1 on the night, and 11 - 2 on aggregate.

As the game wore on Klopp made more changes, with Van Dijk replacing Quansah, before young Polish winger Musialowski made his Liverpool debut, coming on for Bobby Clark, who appeared to roll his ankle.  By now, Liverpool were content to play out time but still created chances, with Elliott forcing a good save from the Sparta keeper, before Gakpo had a third goal ruled out for offside.

It ended 6 - 1 on the night, and 11 - 2 overall.

Liverpool vs Sparta Prague match stats

Possession
Liverpool - 78% - %22 Sparta Prague

Total Shots
Liverpool 22 - 9 Sparta Prague

Shots on Target
Liverpool 12 - 2 Sparta Prague

Corners
Liverpool 8 - 2 Sparta Prague

Fouls
Liverpool 7 - 4 Sparta Prague

Man of the Match

Mo Salah - 8/10 - Our Egyptian King looked back to his best, scoring a goal and tormenting the Sparta defence whenever he had the ball.

What's Next

Liverpool have the small matter of an FA Cup Quarter-Final against Manchester United at Old Trafford this weekend.  The match will kick off at 15.30 on the 17th March 2024.

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