Liverpool have inadvertently been handed an advantage of sorts going into the Champions League quarter final clashes with Real Madrid, as Zinedine Zidane’s men must face bitter rivals Barcelona on 10th April, in between the first and second legs.
In the Premier League, the Reds come across Dean Smith’s Aston Villa side at Anfield on the same date.
What does this mean for Liverpool?
With the La Liga table still relatively tight at the time of writing, as Madrid lie only six points adrift of the top spot in third, the Spanish outfit will have a big judgement call to make with regard to their title defence.
Without wishing to disrespect Aston Villa, our tie on the same date is, by comparison, less of a challenging prospect and potentially opens the door for Jurgen Klopp to rest some of his key stars.
That being said, being adrift of the Champions League places ourselves, the German may opt for caution (particularly in light of our prior 7-2 humbling at Villa Park) and field a still strong XI at Anfield.
Either way, we’re unlikely to see our Spanish opposition take it easy in the El Classico, which could very well hand us a small advantage going into the second-leg meeting at Anfield on 13th April.
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