Former Premier League player Chris Kirkland has lauded Liverpool for the threat they displayed at the Camp Nou in the first leg of the Champions League tie last Wednesday.
Jurgen Klopp’s men were rewarded with a clash against Barcelona after seeing off FC Porto in convincing fashion in the previous round of the competition.
The fact that Liverpool had been in such superb form in the Premier League this season – where they are still in the race to win the title – meant that many people backed them to give Barca a run for their money in the Champions League tie.
The Reds nearly lived up to those expectations as they dominated Barcelona for much of the first leg of the tie, even though the match somehow ended in a 3-0 defeat due to a lack of lady luck.
Speaking to Sky Sports News after the match, former goalkeeper Kirkland claimed Liverpool are still in the tie because both teams still have to play at Anfield – even though he does believe they were unlucky in Spain.
“You can never write Liverpool off at Anfield,” Kirkland told Sky Sports News.
“3-0 flatters Barcelona. It’s almost absurd saying it. But it does.
“Liverpool were the better side on the night by far, for me. The way they played, they totally opened Barcelona up which I can’t remember the last team that has done that to Barcelona in a game of football for a long, long time, especially at the Nou Camp.”