Barring the capitulation to end all capitulations, Liverpool will safely progress to the quarter-finals of the Europa League, but the Reds must first host Sparta Prague in the second leg of their last-16 tie.
Jurgen Klopp's men thumped their Czech foes 5-1 in last week's opening encounter, but the scoreline certainly did not tell the full tale at the epet Arena.
Match preview
© Reuters
After Alexis Mac Allister's spot kick propelled Liverpool into an early lead during last week's first leg, the Reds would have to weather a severe Sparta Prague storm, which they came through unscathed thanks to heroic defending and their hosts' profligacy.
In the end, Conor Bradley would do Sparta Prague's job for them, but Darwin Nunez had already increased Liverpool's advantage with a brilliant brace before the right-back fired into the roof of his own net, and Luis Diaz and Dominik Szoboszlai added some gloss to the scoreline in the second half.
Klopp was under no illusions that the Reds could have travelled home with a much less comfortable cushion, but unless Sparta Prague can channel the spirits of 2016-17 Barcelona, Liverpool should enjoy a stress-free stroll into the last eight of Europe's secondary tournament.
Having won each of their three group games, the Reds are on an overall streak of eight successive Europa League triumphs on home turf and could now become just the second English side to win nine such games on the spin, following in Chelsea's footsteps after the Blues did so between 2013 and 2019.
However, Liverpool were denied an eighth straight victory in all tournaments on Sunday, ceding control of the Premier League title race to Arsenal in an engrossing 1-1 draw with Manchester City, where Klopp and Pep Guardiola's fascinating Premier League rivalry came to a fitting end.
© Reuters
While Liverpool have been irrepressible at home in the Europa League, their beleaguered foes Sparta Prague arrive on Merseyside with an abysmal record of 17 losses from their last 21 continental matches on rival territory, suffering defeat in each of their last four knockout away games.
A hangover from their first-leg reverse was evident during Sunday's Czech Fortuna Liga showdown with Viktoria Plzen, where Brian Priske oversaw yet another chastening four-goal defeat, one which ended the Maroons' 10-match unbeaten run in the top flight stretching back to the end of October.
The reigning champions are still on course for back-to-back Fortuna Liga triumphs, and while their lead at the top of the rankings over bitter foes Slavia Prague has now been cut down to just the one point, Priske's men should only have domestic matters to focus on after Thursday's encounter comes to a close.
Unless the visitors can somehow defy the odds at Anfield, they will bow out of the Europa League at the last-16 stage for the first time - previous campaigns have either ended in the group phase, playoffs or quarter-finals - and only one of their 11 trips to England has ended in victory.
That triumph came all the way back in the 1983-84 UEFA Cup against Watford, since when Sparta Prague have visited Anfield once for the second leg of their 2010-11 Europa League last-32 tie, where a Dirk Kuyt header rubber-stamped the Reds' progression to the next round.
- W
- W
- W
- D
- L
- L
Team News
© Reuters
After coming off early in the second half of last week's first leg with a hamstring issue, Ibrahima Konate did not take part in the Reds' draw with Man City at the weekend and is also due to miss the visit of Sparta, but there is hope that he will recover in time for the weekend's FA Cup showdown with Manchester United.
All of Ben Doak (knee), Joel Matip (knee), Stefan Bajcetic (calf), Diogo Jota (knee), Curtis Jones (shin), Alisson Becker (thigh), Trent Alexander-Arnold (knee) and Thiago Alcantara (muscle) are confined to the treatment room too, while Jayden Danns is recovering from a concussion, but Ryan Gravenberch (ankle) has trained.
Yet to make a first XI since New Year's Day, Mohamed Salah - who has been omitted from the Egypt squad for the upcoming international break - should be spared here too, but Cody Gakpo, James McConnell, Bobby Clark and Kostas Tsimikas will no doubt come into Klopp's thinking.
Liverpool and Sparta could empathise with one another when it came to defensive concerns in the first leg, as Priske was forced to take Asger Sorensen off just before the break, and the 27-year-old Dane missed his side's defeat to Viktoria Plzen with that hamstring issue.
Right-back Andreas Vindheim - who did not make the visitors' Europa League knockout squad - is also out for the long-term, but Ladislav Krejci is fine to play, despite being sent off early in the second half of Sunday's domestic thrashing.
Key attackers Jan Kuchta and Veljko Birmancevic should both be brought back into the first XI after starting that match on the bench, while Angelo Preciado - who is serving a Fortuna Liga ban - returns to the right-hand side.
Liverpool possible starting lineup:
Kelleher; Bradley, Quansah, Van Dijk, Tsimikas; Szoboszlai, McConnell, Clark; Elliott, Gakpo, Koumas
Sparta Prague possible starting lineup:
Vindahl Jensen; Vitik, Krejci, Panak; Preciado, Kairinen, Solbakken, Zeleny; Birmancevic, Kuchta, Haraslin
We say: Liverpool 3-0 Sparta Prague (Liverpool win 8-1 on aggregate)
Sparta Prague should not be travelling to British shores with a four-goal deficit to make up, but failure to convert their glut of first-leg opportunities proved fatal, and they are unlikely to carve out as many openings in front of the Anfield wall.
A weary Liverpool side could be forgiven for taking their foot off the gas ever so slightly, but with several competent youngsters sure to be handed opportunities to impress against a confidence-sapped Sparta outfit, another routine win and place in the last eight is on the cards for Klopp's crop.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
