Bayern Munich 1 - 3 Liverpool

Die Roten: Matip (OG) 39’, Player XX’, Player XX’
The Reds: Mane 26’ 84’, Van Dijk 69’, Player XX’

• Pre-match Thought: Another day, another pre-match Twitter freakout about the line-up, with many Liverpool faithful upset over the James Milner, Georgino Wijnaldum, Jordan Henderson trifecta. No worries, Kloppo got this footy business down. The tie is very much in the balance, with the visitors holding the away goal advantage. So which set of red-clad 5-time European Champions will reign supreme tonight?
• Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah appear to have started the match on opposite flanks as usual. An interesting wrinkle from Klopp. Let’s see if it pays off.
• Liverpool temporarily down to 10 men as Hendo goes off with an apparent ankle issue. He’s back on a moment later after some quick tape work from the physios. Hopefully it’s not too serious.
• Bayern nearly play Lewandowski in with a chip over the top, but Virgil van Dijk does just enough to put him off, and he can’t get the shot away. His appeals for a penalty are (rightfully) waved off.
• Welp, thirteen minutes gone, and so is Jordan Henderson. He cannot carry on, and Fabinho takes his place. Not a bad option to bring off the bench, to be fair.
• GOAL! After a quiet opening 25, Van Dijk decides to go Route 1, and plays a perfect long pass over the top for Mane to run onto. Neuer comes out of goal, but Sadio turns him on the edge of the box, and finishes with a beautiful chipped finish (between two defenders!) into the far corner. Advantage Scousers!
• Robbo works himself into a promising position with a nifty 1-2, but can’t beat Neuer from a tight angle.
• Goal. Matip does well to read the run of Lewa lurking to poke home the cross behind him. However, he does not do well with the whole “clearing the ball” bit, and turns it into the net for an own goal.
• Fabinho picks up a yellow for a harsh challenge on James, also giving away a free kick in a dangerous area. Remember when footy was fun like 5 minutes ago?
• Halftime Thought: Liverpool still have the advantage, but it’s going to be a nervy final 45 minutes. Prior to the equalizer, Liverpool were getting a lot of joy on the counter. Bayern have reined since, but Liverpool could still hit them on the break, especially if they’re chasing a late, decisive goal.
• Salah’s scoring this half. I’m calling it.
• Approaching the hour mark and neither team has had much of a go so far this half. And as I write this Bayern flash a pass across the face of goal. Well then. Carry on.
• Matip picks up a yellow for his one millionth harsh challenge on Lewa tonight. Well earned, I guess.
• GOAL!! VAN DIJK TOWERING HEADER FROM A CORNER WHAT!?! Still twenty minutes to play, but a huge moment from the center back and for the Merseyside Reds.
• Klopp makes his second change, this one by choice, bringing on Divock Origi for Roberto Firmino. Bobby has had a quiet night, but he’s done all the running tonight.
• GOAL!!! Sadio Mane books our ticket to the quarterfinals. Salah picks out his run with an inch-perfect outside of the boot chipped ball to the back post for Mane to head home. And he does.
• And Adam Lallana is the final sub, coming on for Milly.
• Andy Robertson picks up a late yellow, and will miss the next match. Welcome to the big leagues, Alberto Moreno.
• Final Whistle Thought: This one seemed destined to go down to the final whistle, until suddenly it wasn’t. Van Dijk made a Bayern comeback unlikely, and Mane finished off all hope in style. This Liverpool team is fucking mustard, and don’t you forget it.

We’ll be back shortly to take an in-depth look at everything that happened in today’s game with the full recap. Until then, let us know your take on the ups and downs of the match in the comments, and if you haven’t already, join the community on the Liverpool Offside, where we’ll have full coverage and lively in-game discussion for every match this season.