Leroy Sane has inadvertently challenged Liverpool fans to up an inevitably fiery atmosphere even more come Wednesday’s Champions League quarter-final first leg.
The Manchester City star has bravely welcomed the noise inside Anfield on a European night, perhaps unknowingly inspiring the Kop to give the Premier League champions-elect a harrowing arrival on Merseyside.
A plan to greet the Liverpool team bus with the usual blend of pyrotechnics, flags and familiar chants was deemed as potentially illegal by the Manchester Evening News. Needless it be said that such seemingly misguided insinuations have only motivated Reds more.
Sane has since insisted City won’t be intimidated inside one of the most electrifying stadiums in European football.
“It’s a really good stadium and the atmosphere is really good, but I don’t think we’ll bother too much about the noise,” he told the Manchester Evening News.
“We always try to play our games and will be focused enough. For me, it makes it a lot of fun to play when the atmosphere is really loud.”
Be careful what you wish for.
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January’s thrilling 4-3 win over Pep Guardiola’s men served as a clue to what could be in store over two legs between English football’s most explosive attacking teams.
Combine the talent up top to an undoubtedly boisterous atmosphere and a Champions League classic beckons for every football fan on the planet.
There will be no place to hide for any player when things get underway on Wednesday, with an occasion of such magnitude allowing no room for mistakes.
It’s up to Liverpool to go toe-to-toe with the Premier League’s top-scoring team and fans who have done it all before to give City a torrid welcome.