Liverpool’s ability to ‘blitz’ teams may give them an outside chance of eliminating Real Madrid from the Champions League tonight, according to Chris Sutton.
The former Blackburn striker was speaking ahead of the round of 16 second leg clash at the Bernabeu, where the Reds must win by three goals or more to remain in the competition.
It seems a tall order away to the holders of the trophy, although the lack of expectation on Jurgen Klopp’s team may just help them to get the result they need in order to progress.
Speaking on BBC’s Football Daily Podcast in assessing Liverpool’s chances of getting through to the last eight, Sutton remarked: “It’s highly unlikely but we know that Liverpool have talented players. We know they have periods in games when they can absolutely blitz teams.”
He continued: “The pressure is off, nobody expects Liverpool to get a result, but they’ll know that it’s within them.”
The 50-year-old’s point about the Reds being able to ‘blitz’ opponents is a pertinent one, with Klopp’s side showing a few examples of that so far this season.
They stuck nine goals past Bournemouth and seven past Rangers in the first two months of the campaign, reaching the latter tally again just 10 days ago in a famous win over Manchester United.
Of course, they also blitzed Real Madrid in the opening 20 minutes at Anfield last month, going 2-0 up before it all fell apart rather soberingly.
Furthermore, as Sutton said, tonight’s match may be viewed by some as a free hit for Liverpool, with an expectation among many neutral observers that Carlo Ancelotti’s side will finish the job with comfort.
There’s no denying it’ll be a tall order for the Reds to win by three or more goals at the Bernabeu, but Klopp must send them out to have a go, as an early goal might just make the tie rather interesting indeed.