Finally, the quarterfinal round of the UEFA Champions League has been completed. Four teams have qualified for the semifinal round. Real Madrid and Villarreal secured their places in the semis two days ago. Last night, two English clubs, Liverpool and Manchester City, confirmed the semifinals. Man City, the Premier League table topper, eliminated Atletico Madrid by 1-0 aggregate to go to the semifinals. Meanwhile, Liverpool defeated Benfica by an aggregate of 6-4. As a result, the semifinal lineup has been confirmed now. Manchester City will face Real Madrid in the first semifinal on April 26. On the next day, Liverpool will play against Villarreal at Anfield.
Liverpool 3-3 Benfica
Liverpool won the first leg against Benfica by 3-1. So, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp made some changes in the second leg of the quarterfinals. Last night, Liverpool hosted Benfica at Anfield to play the 2nd leg. In this match, Klopp set his team formation with 4-3-3. Moreover, he made six changes in this match. On the other hand, Benfica’s manager played his team in a 4-2-3-1 formation.
As the home team, Liverpool got tremendous support from the stadium. The home team also didn’t disappoint the audience as they scored the first goal in the 21st minute. Liverpool’s defender Ibrahim Konate scored this goal with the help of Tsimikas. However, Benfica didn’t take much time to find the equalizer. They leveled the scoreline within ten minutes. Midfielder Goncalo Ramos netted the ball in the 32nd minute for Benfica. The scoreline didn’t change more before the second half.
Coming back from the half-time break, the home team tried to dominate everywhere on the pitch. They took 17 shots in the entire match. As a result, the Klopp boys scored two more goals in the second half. Roberto Firmino scored those two goals in the difference of ten minutes. His first goal came in the 55th minute and 65th minute.
Surprisingly, Benfica played relatively better after conceding three goals. In the 73rd minute, they scored their second goal as Roman Yaremchuk found the net for Benfica. Moreover, they leveled the scoreline when Darwin Nunez scored the 3rd goal at the very last moment. In the 81st minute, he found the net with J. Mario. However, both teams couldn’t score more in the remaining minutes. As a result, Liverpool qualified for the semifinals of the UEFA Champions League by an aggregate of 6-4.
