Bayern Munich v Liverpool: Talking points from Reds' front three to Franck Ribery

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  • Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino

    With the Champions League opening up, opportunity knocks for both Bayern Munich and Liverpool.

    Their round-of-16 tie is finely poised after the two drew 0-0 at Anfield last month, meaning the first goal will be crucial as Liverpool hold the slight advantage being the away team. But Bayern know that an outright win on the night will see the Bundesliga giants through to the quarter-finals.

    As you would expect, there are a myriad of talking points ahead of Wednesday’s heavyweight clash at Allianz Arena and we examine three of the most prominent below:

    FRONT THREE FIND RHYTHM

    Sadio Mane

    Sadio Mane

    Liverpool’s front three of Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane can harness confidence from their individual and collective performance in the 4-2 win over Burnley at the weekend.

    It was one of the rare occasions this season in which the entire attacking unit found their rhythm because for much of the campaign it’s been one, or two, of three in full flow but seldom the whole set.

    Granted, Firmino has been forced to play a restrained role and create much deeper as Jurgen Klopp has often employed a conservative 4-2-3-1 with Salah in the spearhead.

    Yet the Brazilian showed his qualities as a predatory No9 on Sunday, finishing two quintessential poacher opportunities and roaming about the pitch in constant search of an opening.

    Those chances were being created by Salah. As a primary goalscorer, the Egyptian will be assessed through the prism of goals scored, however his contribution in other areas of the final third is vital, as shown on Sunday.

    Mane has almost been a combination of the two, fashioning openings through his activity on the ball plus finishing expertly and regularly with four goals in his last three games.

    All three have reached double figures in the Premier League this season, and they replicated that feat in the Champions League last term, too.

    Combined, only six have been scored this campaign but the indication is that they can finally make a big imprint as a collective.

    LIVERPOOL’S AWAY FORM

    Adam Lallana

    Adam Lallana

    Curiously Liverpool’s form away from Anfield domestically and in Europe has been pretty poor.

    Indeed, the Reds haven’t won on the road since a slender mid-January victory over Brighton and haven’t scored in their previous two, albeit against eternal rivals Everton and Manchester United.

    If you dissect their results against the Premier League’s top six, they’ve managed only one win with three draws and a defeat.

    These struggles are mirrored in the Champions League having lost all three group stage games on their travels.

    The questions are why, and how can Klopp change this in Munich where Niko Kovac’s Bavarians have scored eight times in three games and are unbeaten in this season’s edition?

    Midfield dynamism has been the issue. James Milner or Jordan Henderson have regularly partnered Georginio Wijnaldum with the third creative role constantly changing.

    Milner and Henderson noticeably slow Liverpool’s attacking transitions and by removing those two entirely, Liverpool function much smoother.

    A middle three of Fabinho at No6, Georginio Wijnaldum box-to-box and the counter-pressing energy of Adam Lallana, who was deeply impressive on Sunday, would be Klopp’s best combination to facilitate the front three.

    RIBERY THREAT

    Franck Ribery

    Franck Ribery

    Franck Ribery only featured for the last 10 minutes or so in the first leg after the birth of his daughter the night before, but he was an immediate threat.

    Injuries and decline have forced Ribery into a peripheral role under Kovac, yet the 35-year-old remains a classy and effective talent.

    It’s not just the Frenchman’s skill set either, but his cunning trait as one of the most experienced players in Bayern’s team.

    Trent Alexander-Arnold is prone to naive performances and this is something Ribery can exploit.

    He’s in the mood as well after producing three quite splendid assists in Bayern’s 6-0 demolition of Wolfsburg on Saturday. These were procured having started on the bench and in a 35-minute spell.

    Ribery is confident, dynamic and his range of delivery means much of Bayern’s strategy should be based around pinning Trent Alexander-Arnold back and penetrating through their veteran winger.

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