It’s tempting to look at the six goals scored at Anfield – and the 11 over the two games – and conclude that Jurgen Klopp was treating the Europa League with utmost regard.
However, as the goals poured down on an increasingly perplexed and helpless Peter Vindahl in the Sparta Prague goal, it became evident that the Liverpool manager was treating Europe’s secondary tournament with something approaching contempt.
Klopp’s team is far too good for this competition, and their two-legged thrashing of their last-16 opponents was a brutal reminder of that. Take it seriously? This was anything but a whole 180 minutes. It was more than a little comical.
The scoreboard displaying an 11-2 aggregate victory confirmed this, but if that wasn’t enough, the sight of the Prague players gleefully bouncing in unison with their superbly boisterous away end at full time, after such a resounding defeat, was further evidence that the visitors were simply happy to be here, at Anfield, against Liverpool.
With an FA Cup quarter-final coming up on Sunday – away at Manchester United no less – and a Premier League title race well underway but temporarily on hold until the end of the month, this was an ideal time for the manager to rest his big guns, ease those creaking limbs, and give nights off to the one, two, or three who might have needed it after a punishing few weeks for an injury-hit squad.
Instead, Klopp went stronger than expected, and Liverpool led 9-1 on aggregate after four goals were scored in the first 15 minutes. It was like to putting two thumbs up to UEFA, which would undoubtedly have preferred more equal competition for their knockout matches.
The comeback of Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen against Qarabag keeps a romantic, narrative-laden encounter with the Reds alive, but no one will want to be drawn against Klopp’s in-form squad on Friday afternoon, that is for sure. They continue to roll, accumulating momentum on all fronts.
Darwin Nunez, one of several surprise starters, got the ball rolling inside seven minutes by finishing off Dominik Szoboszlai’s cut-back for his 17th goal of the season, before Bobby Clark scored his first senior goal almost immediately after, thanks to some typically tenacious pressing high up, this time from Mohamed Salah, making his first Liverpool start since New Year’s Day.
Salah, one of the few high-profile individuals whose presence was not unexpected, scored his 20th goal of the season after Clark turned provider by winning it after more dawdling from a shell-shocked Sparta. Shortly after, the Egyptian supplied Cody Gakpo at number four. Done and dusted. With more over 75 minutes to play, the patrons had gotten their money’s worth.
Salah’s achievement makes him the first Liverpool player to score 20 goals in seven consecutive seasons. Imagine how many more he could have notched if this hadn’t been his fourth appearance in 2024.
Sparta provided the consolation their fans deserved when Veljko Birmancevic nudged ahead of Wataru Endo before rolling one past an otherwise underworked Caoimhin Kelleher, but it was insignificant. The damage had already been done in this match, as Szoboszlai’s goal just after halftime saw the hosts reach double figures on the aggregate scoreboard.
Gakpo’s touch from a shot by the great Harvey Elliott, who came on in the second half, brought his total to six for the night and 11 for the two matches. The Netherlands international now has 13 for the season, five of which have come in Europe.
Gakpo has not always been a regular in this team, but his contributions in this tournament have been significant, and he will have been disappointed not to have scored his first Anfield hat-trick after skying Elliott’s well-weighted pass shortly after. In stoppage time, an offside flag prevented him from scoring a third goal. It was also not thoroughly checked.
The Reds have already scored 117 goals in all competitions, with their front five responsible for 75 of them and Academy graduates accounting for 15. It was too much for Sparta.
Liverpool is only passing through in the Europa League, and bigger fish will be fried next season, you can be sure. Whether through Premier League qualification or winning the tournament, a new manager will undoubtedly have Champions League football to look forward to. They will be responsible for adding more famous chapters to the club’s illustrious history.
Prior to that, it has created a real opportunity for Klopp to capture the one trophy he has yet to win in his nine years on Merseyside. And you can be confident he will take it seriously.
