Liverpool and Real Madrid meet early this season for the first leg of their knockout stage match, as they renew hostilities. These two teams are the finalists for the 2021-22 season, and it is just unfortunate that they will meet early. Liverpool is at the second of Group A during the group stage, standing behind Napoli. Real on the other hand is the first in Group F, defeating Celtic, Shakhtar, and Leipzig on their group. This match is an exciting match, as two powerhouse squads sets up a reunion. These two teams meet on February 22, 2023, at 4:00 AM (GMT+8), and will be hosted by Liverpool.
There are just nine matches these two teams played in their history, and the visitors has more wins against the hosts. The visitors had five wins from those nine matches, while the hosts only had three wins. Additionally, for the visitors, they are undefeated in their last three away matches against the hosts. However, the hosts can gain confidence from the fact that they are in a five-game winning streak in the contest. Coming into this game, they are hoping to show the same dominance against the visitors.
Liverpool
Currently, this squad is at the eighth spot of the Premier League, which is not a shock since they have been battling with inconsistency. This is the number one problem they need to address if they want to go further in the contest. Luckily for them, they were able to defeat Newcastle United on their last match. They edged out their opponent in a 2-0 win, and are now hopeful for the same result in this game. Fortunately for this squad, they were able to show improvements, just in time for the knockout round. If this squad continues to improve, they can move to the right direction and improve their standings.
It was Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo who leads Liverpool, as they can be lethal for their opponents. However, Nunez is still a doubt in this game, as he suffered a painful shoulder problem on their last match. Luis Diaz, Ibrahim Konate, Thiago Alcantara, and Calvin Ramsay are all out for this match. Arthur on the other hand remains to be a doubt as he is still recovering from thigh surgery.
Real Madrid
Real is currently at the second spot of the La Liga league table, but they are not at their best this season. They are fortunate that they were able to finish at the top of their group, even defeating other football giants. On their last game, they were able to to secure a comfortable 2-0 win versus Osasuna. As they come into this game, they remain hopeful for them to achieve the same result. Although Real is capable of defeating their opponents, in order to win against Liverpool, they need to double their efforts. They need to address their issues if they want to stand a chance against their powerhouse opponent in this match.
Due to a muscular fatigue he sustained on their last game, Karim Benzema is a doubt for this game. Additionally, Aurelien Tchouameni, and Toni Kroos are both suffering from illness, which made them unavailable in this match. Mendy, and Diaz are also unavailable due to their respective issues.
Prediction:
Draw
Odds: 0.93
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