Liverpool vs. Sevilla FC: Prematch (9/13/17)

We're back lads! After a long wait, the mighty Reds are back in the Champions League! This will be their first time back in the big stage since the 2014/15 when they finished 3rd in their group.

That season, Liverpool crashed out of the Europa League by losing 4-5 on PKs after a 1-1 aggregate with Besiktas of Turkey.

This was the start of the demise of the Brendan Rogers reign. However, it was also led to the appointment of our savior: Jürgen Klopp. With Klopp at the helm, employing his famous "gegenpressing, heavy metal football," he guided Liverpool to their first European Final since 2007 in the 2015-16 season. In the final, Liverpool faced today's opponents, Sevilla, losing 1-3 after taking the lead through Daniel Sturridge in the 1st half. This was even more defeating for Liverpool as winning the Europa League was their only passage to getting back to the Champions League as they could only finish 8th in the Premier League that season.

Today marks a long awaited return to the Champions League and the opponent could not have been more perfect. After two years at Liverpool, Klopp has finally made his mark on the team with signings perfectly suited to his high-intensity, quick-paced football. Just taking a look at the lineups, the 2016 Europa League Final, their are significant personnel changes for both teams.

Compare that to the lineups for today:

Only four of those starters are starting today: Lovren, Moreno, Can, and Firmino. On the opposing side, Sevilla have three survivors from their victory: Escudero, N'Zonzi, and Banega. Unai Emery has also since left them to join the riches of PSG, with Eduardo Berizzo now taking the reigns. The personnel turnover makes this an intriguing game as the two sides are hardly recognizable from their last meeting.

The key man for Liverpool will once again be Sadio Mané. After a red card at the weekend vs Manchester City, the Reds will hope that he can maintain his blistering form prior to that incident. Mohammed Salah will also be someone to keep an eye on. Though he has impressed since his move from AS Roma this summer, he was criticized at the weekend for squandering a few chances. He will hope to find his scoring boots today. In goal, Lorius Karius will hope to make a bigger impression since his last outing against Arsenal. He didn't need to make many saves that game because the Reds were so rampant on the other end, but he looked uncomfortable with his feet, almost turning over the ball on three separate occasions. The presence of Coutinho will be something to watch too. After trying to force a summer move to Barcelona, it will be interesting to see how the crowd reacts when he inevitably comes on to make his first appearance of the season.

The key man for Sevilla will be former Stoke player Steven N'Zonzi. A powerful, menacing figure in the midfield for Sevilla, the Frenchman can dictate the play and will be used to shield the backline from the deadly Liverpool trio of Mané, Firmino, and Salah. For Sevilla to take any kind of result back to Seville, Wissam Ben Yedder must also take his chances up front. The Liverpool backline is infamous for being weak and this will no doubt lead to chances for him. The pair of Joaquin Correa and Sergio Escudero will also look to take his chances against the young Joe Gomez.

As a fan of Liverpool, I am looking forward to this match quite a bit. The boys will no doubt have revenge on their mind and I'm excited to see MFS back together after they were broken up at the weekend by a red card. Sevilla are a strong side though and they will be the closest competitors for clinching first in this relatively weak group. I feel that the Anfield crowd will be a huge factor in this game. Their are few stadiums in the world with the atmosphere that Anfield is capable of generating and I think the Reds will feed off their energy to bag all three points.

PREDICTION: 2-1 to Liverpool.

LINK: http://www.navixsport.com/sport.php?id=3005&page=asslknyslklaslkll