The Liverpool fans here in the Transfer Tavern are gearing up for a quarter-final match second leg against Premier League rivals Man City tonight after a fantastic win in the first leg. Indeed, their draw with Everton on Saturday was the ideal warm-up for their attacking stars, as many were rested in anticipation of this match.

Liverpool will be looking to continue the stunning form that saw them remain unbeaten in the group stages, alongside finding the net 23 times in the six matches. The Reds have the ability to blow any team away like we all seen last week and, that’s exactly what Jurgen Klopp will be looking for again tonight – which will surely delight our punters.

Our regulars have enjoyed watching Liverpool this season, however, are very mindful that a second-half collapse much like that against Sevilla can happen at any point if they self-destruct. Indeed, that simply can not happen against a Man City team who are licking their wounds from back-to-back defeats inside a week.

With defensive reinforcements brought in and a re-jig of players after the sale of Philippe Coutinho, Klopp will be expecting his players to level up to move on to the semi-final and our landlord takes a look at which TWO players, in particular, should be the difference…

Virgil Van Dijk

The big Dutch defender should be enjoying his taste of Champions League football with Liverpool tonight, the reason he moved to the Reds. The £75m signing is the rock Klopp has been looking for to organise and sort out his defence, though needs a big performance after some rocky outings when he first moved.

Van Dijk must put in an almighty display tonight if he his to start to justify his price tag, helping give the team a boost from the back.

Our barman thinks if Van Dijk can come out of Manchester with a clean sheet and a good personal performance, then it will give him the confidence boost he’ll need to really need to kick on.

Mo Salah

The Egyptian is one of the sole reasons Liverpool have been playing the way they have this season! He’s helped himself to a record number of goals so far and doesn’t look like stopping, constantly breaking behind enemy lines to scare the life out of opposition defences.

If Liverpool are to get anything out of this game, then Klopp needs Salah fit and to produce one of his now expected performances. Our regulars tip Salah to hit stupid goal scoring figures this season if he continues on his current trajectory and that can only benefit the Reds.