James Pearce has issued a warning to Liverpool ahead of the impending clash with Aston Villa this afternoon, urging the club to correct its home form in the next two games to avoid an effective end to their season.
The Reds face another home tie four days later against Zinedine Zidane’s Real Madrid, with a 3-1 deficit to bridge in order to grant themselves passage through to the semi-finals of the Champions League.
“If the slump at home continues for another five days then this season will effectively be all over,” the Liverpool journalist wrote in The Athletic’s fan Q&A. “Massive two games coming up.”
READ MORE: (Image) Liverpool v Aston Villa team news confirmed as Mane dropped & Firmino returns
It’s a tough ask putting out a team strong enough vanquish the Villans, whilst resting enough players to ensure that a reasonably fit squad can correct a dire prior outing against Madrid on Wednesday.
Taking into account the continued absence of the Anfield faithful to cheer us on and it would appear that we have something of a mountain to climb with only half the mountaineering gear (even less if we factor in the loss of Virgil van Dijk).
With the top four race out of our hands, we’re reliant on the likes of West Ham, Chelsea, Tottenham, and Everton dropping points around us.
As an absolute minimum, however, we cannot afford to drop any ourselves, should we wish to uphold some chance of Champions League qualification next season – a “massive two games” indeed.
Rather this content was ad-free? EOTK PRO gives you exclusive LFC news to your inbox