Anfield Stadium on 5 April 2018.

After a two-and-a-half-month hiatus, Manchester City visited the Premier League's famous stadium again.

Just like last time, the stands at Anfield were still packed with rabid fans, almost full.

Liverpool's second run into the quarter-finals of the Champions League after many years is very exciting for many Liverpool fans.

With no hope of winning the league title in mind, they have higher expectations for the team's record in the Champions League.

But Liverpool had bad luck and drew Manchester City as a fierce rival.

How to cross the mountain of Manchester City is a big problem for Liverpool.

After the last game at Anfield, Liverpool fans have a new appreciation for the quality of their opponents and know that even on their home turf, it will not be easy to gnaw on this hard bone.

But if they can't even win at home, then they basically have no hope of advancing to the last four.

So no matter what, they have to win this game, and Liverpool simply can't afford to lose.

Such a huge pressure on performance made Liverpool's players look solemn and nervous.

In this battle, they played with the mentality that if they don't succeed, they will become a benevolent.

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp shook hands with Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola and returned to his side of the dugout to sit down.

He looked at the players on both sides on the pitch preparing to kick off, and couldn't help but feel a little apprehensive in his heart.

The last time he failed to win the opponent, he left Liverpool with a lot of hidden dangers.

Pep Guardiola must have studied Liverpool's tactical style of play during this time and learned the lessons of the last game.

Considering that the Champions League knockout stages have a much smaller margin for error than in the league, it is likely that City will change tactics and play more conservatively and targetedly, thereby limiting Liverpool's attack, avoiding losing on the road, or conceding fewer goals on the road.

When they return to their home stadium, they can take advantage of the home game and win Liverpool in one fell swoop.

The world says that Anfield is the home of the devil, but isn't the Etihad stadium the devil?

After all these years, how many teams have been able to get out of it all here?

Klopp did not dare to bring the suspense of the game to the next game, because it was tantamount to handing over the power of life and death to the enemy.

So, he wants to win the fight in this round and kill the suspense of the match.

For this, Klopp arranged very aggressive tactics.

If this tactic works, it's all well and good, but if it doesn't, it's not good.

On the other hand, Pep Guardiola is also thinking about what tactics his opponent will use.

As Klopp thought, in order to seek stability, he arranged two defensive midfielders to start this game, N'Golo Kante and Fernandinho.

The aim is to enhance the midfield's interception ability and avoid the last time, because the ribs exposed a lot of gaps, giving the opponent a chance.

However, such an arrangement inevitably weakened City's attacking capabilities.

For this reason, Pep Guardiola had to change the team's formation and adopt an infrequently used 4231 formation.

Gabriel Jesus replaced Sergio Aguero as the lone arrow, followed by Lin Quan, Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva, followed by N'Golo Kante and Fernandinho.

The back four are Aymeric Laporte, John Stones, Virgil van Dijk and Walker.

It is clear from this starting line-up that Manchester City is not going to play on the counter-attack like they did last time.

They plan to focus on passing, using a strong midfielder to control the ball, reduce the opponent's attacking opportunities, and then look for opportunities in the pass and control themselves to break the enemy to win.

It's just that this set of tactics is rarely used by Manchester City after all, and Guardiola himself has no bottom in his heart, so whether this will work or not.

Just then, the referee blew the whistle for the start of the game.

The coaches of both teams put away their thoughts and turned their eyes to the pitch.

After the opening, the Liverpool players resolutely followed the manager's request, launching a fierce attack on Manchester City's goal from the first second of the game.

Is this to steal the opening?

Pep Guardiola held his chin and pondered.

Liverpool, for their part, probably hope to score early by attacking and then activate the form of the players, and then rely on the frenzied atmosphere at home to make the team quickly gain momentum, and then completely take over the game like last time!

For a team like Liverpool, you really can't give them an advantage.

Once they have the upper hand, they will only get stronger and more excited.

And how perverted the crazy Liverpool is, I have already learned it last time at Anfield Manchester City.

So Pep Guardiola immediately stepped up and let the Manchester City players on the pitch retreat across the board.

If you want to attack, you can retreat from the defensive line, compress your passing and coordination space, and don't let your attack threaten.

Manchester City's defensive level, while not boasting of being the top, is definitely not paper-me-down.

When they drop out and the players are prepared in advance, it is obviously not so simple for the opponent's attack to tear through their defence.

Liverpool's attack was aggressive, but it didn't pose much of a threat.

The likes of Mohamed Salah, Manny and Roberto Firmino tried all sorts of things up front, but they couldn't break through the opposition's defence.

Fortunately, there are no two extremely fast wingers on the field, Sane and Mbappe, so that their defensive pressure is slightly reduced, at least they don't have to worry too much about the opponent playing a dangerous and fast counterattack.

But that doesn't mean Liverpool can really rest easy, as City were very aggressive in their own half, and as soon as they broke the ball, they immediately moved the ball to the feet of the three attacking midfielders in front of them.

Although Sane and Mbappe are not there, Lin Quanke, the core of the opposing team, is still on the field.

And the people around him all have good passing ability, which makes Manchester City still a great threat when counterattacking.

The first half played 15 minutes and there was a big difference in the number of shots on goal between the two sides, with Liverpool having five shots on goal and Manchester City having just one.

But Manchester City's only shot on goal almost scared Liverpool fans into a cold sweat!

Liverpool, on the other hand, had four of their five shots from distance and barely threatened.

Although Liverpool seem to have the advantage from the pitch, from the perspective of threatening attacks, it is Manchester City who have the advantage.

The main reason for this phenomenon is that Liverpool can't tear through the opposition's defence, and it is difficult to get the ball into the box and give the strikers the opportunity to shoot from close range in the box.

It's not okay to go on like this, the momentum is scoreless, the formation is pressed so high, and the rear is really empty.

The most important thing is that Liverpool's crazy attacking momentum can't last long, after all, there is always a time when the chicken blood is cold.

On the other hand, Manchester City, their offense that relies on passing control and cooperation will not be affected, and even, when Liverpool's offensive declines, Manchester City's back line pressure is reduced, and more troops can be invested in the attack, their offensive threat is still increasing!

If Liverpool had the advantage in the first fifteen minutes, after fifteen minutes the game was reversed.

After Liverpool attacked for a while, finding that it had little effect, the players gradually became a little discouraged and did not want to continue such pointless attacks.

But as soon as they reduced their attacking pressure, Manchester City gradually began to take over possession with the strength of their midfield.

It's no secret that Manchester City like to play passing, and they often have more than 60 or even 70 per cent possession in games.

In the words of many football legends, Pep Guardiola's side are defending with passing.

After all, as long as the ball is at the feet of Manchester City, the opponent will not be able to attack.

In the face of this kind of team that likes to play passing, there are two ways to deal with them.

One is to retreat in stride, let the opponent in, and then take advantage of the emptiness in the opponent's backcourt to sneak up on them by defending and counterattacking.

The other is Liverpool, who rely on crazy high pressing to destroy and limit the opponent's passing, so that they can't pass and can't control the ball.

Liverpool are a team that likes to press high and their players have always been known for their ability to run.

In the past, relying on this tactic has made those teams who like to possess the ball deflated.

But this trick, in today's pass against Manchester City, did not work.

Manchester City have clearly learned the lesson of their last game, and this time they are no longer looking for extreme speed in attacking and defending, but are looking for safe and stable control.

Players don't usually get the ball forward as soon as they get it, even if it creates chances to open the scoring.

They will be able to pass the ball to their teammates who are safer and keep them in control.

Klopp frowned, he felt that Guardiola was too steady?

Is it necessary?

A few times just now, when Manchester City broke the ball, he was scared into a cold sweat, because as long as the Manchester City players in that position passed the ball out and to the front, Liverpool's back line was likely to be penetrated because of the lack of defense.

But the other side voluntarily gave up such an opportunity, and it seems that Manchester City's tactics today are very conservative.

But don't say it, this conservatism has a very good effect.

At least Liverpool's tackles have dropped dramatically, and many times, opponents make mistakes because they see an opportunity and rush to pass the ball out, ignoring the defenders around them, or because their intentions are too obvious and the opponent is prejudged and thus being tackled.

And when the players are attacking forward, the formation naturally cannot be maintained so tightly, especially the full-backs on both sides, who may have rushed up.

At this time, it was suddenly counterattacked by the opponent, and the back line could easily be broken through due to incomplete formation and personnel.

This is also why, in this era, the top giants attach great importance to the conversion of offense and defense.

Because this is when both sides are most prone to make mistakes and are most likely to have a chance to score.

But Manchester City doesn't want such opportunities, and Liverpool naturally has a lot of fewer opportunities to tackle.

The opposing squad has five midfielders, while Liverpool only have three.

They are at a disadvantage in terms of the number of people in the midfield, and even the trio with the forward line is only slightly advantageous.

But when the opponent is holding the ball, the position of Stones as a defender will be advanced, making Manchester City's formation become 3331, a very strange formation, but the number of midfielders has increased, reaching an astonishing 6 midfielders.

The numerical advantage allows Manchester City to always find a safe receiving point in an open position when facing Liverpool's pressing, and pass the ball smoothly.

This will not work, Klopp waved his hand and motioned for the defenders to step up as well, leaving only one person to keep an eye on Jesus, and the others all went to press.

This trick has a certain effect, but the effect is not obvious.

Because Manchester City is still one more person than them!

When City are down at the back, goalkeeper Ederson can be involved as a starting point.

As a result, 10 of City's 11 players are on target.

Liverpool, on the other hand, could only send nine men to press, and the goalkeeper and the defender responsible for dragging the back defense could not come up.

Although Liverpool's players are running at all costs, trying to make up for the numerical disadvantage.

But they can run, and so can the City players.

In the process of pouring feet and passing, City's players do not clubb like a stake, but make full use of the width of the field, actively moving their positions and trying to find a safe space to receive the ball.

This makes Liverpool's players a little powerless, after all, the stadium is so big, and they can't completely lock the opponent's passing space by relying on them.

The most important thing is that Manchester City is a team that mainly plays passing, and the players' foot skills are very delicate, even if Liverpool relies on active running, erasing the gap in numbers in local areas, the opponent can rely on superb skills and excellent ball protection ability, and pass the ball under the pressure of Liverpool players.

Judging from the situation on the field, it seems that Manchester City have used reasonable tactics to defuse Liverpool's high pressing tactics.

If they continue to play at this pace, Liverpool, who are too physically exhausted, will be defeated by Manchester City in the second half due to physical exhaustion.

Feeling that the situation was not in favor of their own team, the Liverpool fans in the stands began to feel anxious.

They are in desperate need of goals now, and just one goal can change their passive situation.

The Reds are a legendary team, and it seems that every time a team is at a disadvantage, someone always stands up and comes out for the team!

This time, it was Manchester City's veteran Milner who stood up!

The 32-year-old Milner, with his knowledge of David Silva when he was a teammate at Manchester City, quietly approached Silva when he moved his position and was ready to receive the ball.

By the time N'Golo Kante had the ball crossed, Milner was quick to get up.

He bumped Silva from behind, affecting Silva's center of gravity and preventing him from completing his prepared catch.

Milner is experienced and has the right amount of power to disrupt the opponent's body balance without causing the opponent to fall and give the referee a chance to blow the whistle.

And just when David Silva's balance was affected, he reached out from behind and poked the ball into his team-mate Salah.

Here's Liverpool's chance! (End of chapter)