The Road to Madrid: How Liverpool reached the Champions League final

It was another magic night at Anfield that ultimately secured Liverpool’s spot in the Champions League final, but we’ll get to that later. 

The Reds will be looking to go one better this season after their 3-1 loss to Real Madrid last term in Ukraine as manager Jurgen Klopp aims to ends his dire final form as manager. 

Like Saturday’s opponents Tottenham, Liverpool were drawn into one of the more difficult groups when the draw was made. Up against PSG, Napoli and FK Crvena Zvezda, Liverpool signalled their intentions for the dramatic from the get go when they welcomed the French champions to Anfield. Two goals in the space of six first half minutes saw the Reds 2-0 up against PSG courtesy of Daniel Sturridge and James Milner. 

Thomas Meunier halved the deficit five minutes before the break, that the opportune time to score as Thomas Tuchel’s side sought a result on Merseyside. Seven minutes from time Kylian Mbappe drew PSG level, but in injury time, Roberto Firmino struck as Liverpool landed a 3-2 win and a huge three points. A late goal proved decisive in Napoli, too, this time as the Serie A outfit notched a 90th minute winner, with Lorenzo Insigne landing all the spoils for Carlo Ancelotti's side. 

Back on home turf, however, Liverpool made light work of FK Crvena Zvezda to quickly bounce back from the disappointment in Naples. Firmino set Liverpool on their way to a 4-0 win midway through the first half before Mohamed Salah doubled their lead on the stroke of half time. The Egyptian netted his second and the Reds’ third six minutes after the restart before Sadio Mane got in on the act 10 minutes from time. 

Back-to-back away games almost saw Liverpool’s Champions League hopes go up in smoke, however. FK Crvena Zvezda exacted their revenge upon Klopp’s side as Milan Pavkov bagged a first half brace to condemn Liverpool to a 2-0 defeat. A trip to Paris followed, and with it; another defeat. Juan Bernat opened the scoring for the Parisian powerhouse after 13 minutes before Neymar added a second. James Milner brought Liverpool back into the game from the spot moments before half time, but Liverpool were unable to build on that goal. 

And so, progression to the next round of the Champions League was in their hands as Liverpool welcomed Napoli to Anfield in the final round of group stage fixtures. It was Salah who bagged the key goal with 10 minutes of the first half to go, but credit must go to Alisson, whose fine last-ditch stop late on to deny Arkadiusz Milik saw the Reds go through in second as they secured a 1-0 victory having needed to win with a clean sheet or two clear goals to progress. 

Drawn against Bayern in the last-16, few gave Liverpool a chance of overcome the Bundesliga side after a 0-0 draw at Anfield, but the Reds were hugely impressive in Munich. Mane continued his great run of knockout form as he latched onto Virgil van Dijk’s raking long ball to net past Manuel Meuer. Joel Matip then inadvertently turned the ball into his own net to give Bayern a chance, but Liverpool were back ahead courtesy of Van Dijk with 20 minutes to play. Mane confirmed the 3-1 win in Germany late on in a memorable performance from the Merseysiders. 

In the quarter-finals, Liverpool faced familiar foes in FC Porto and made light work of the Portuguese side, securing a 6-1 aggregate win. Naby Keita and Firmino netted in the 2-0 first leg win at Anfield, with the latter scoring in the 4-1 victory in Portugal. Mane, Salah and Van Dijk also got their names on the scoresheet as they eased into the semi-finals. 

However, Liverpool were handed a difficult semi-final draw as they came up against Barcelona. At the time gunning for the treble, all hope seemed lost as Lionel Messi tore into the Reds at Camp Nou. The Argentine bagged a brace in Spain, while former Reds striker Luis Suarez came back to haunt his former employers with a first half goal. 

3-0 down on aggregate, Liverpool would go on to put in one of the finest Champions League turnarounds as they battered Barcelona 4-0 at Anfield. Divock Origi set Liverpool on their way to Madrid with his and Liverpool’s first after seven minutes. Georginio Wijnaldum replaced Andrew Robertson at half time and made his mark on the game as he netted twice in the space of three minutes to draw Liverpool level. Origi completed the turnaround 10 minutes from time as he bagged his second, tucking away Trent Alexander-Arnold’s smart corner to secure a 4-3 aggregate win. 

With their spot sealed, and Tottenham overcoming Ajax the following night, it set up the first all-English Champions League final in 11 years. Liverpool have beaten Tottenham in their two meetings this season and after final heartbreak 12 months ago, the Reds will be looking to lift the trophy at the Wanda Metropolitano on Saturday night.