LIVERPOOL, April 28, 2022 (BSS/AFP) - Jurgen Klopp warned that Liverpool
must remain "on alert" despite putting one foot in the Champions League final
with a dominant 2-0 win over Villarreal in the first leg of their semi-final
tie at Anfield on Wednesday.

   Two goals in two minutes undid Villarreal boss Unai Emery's defensive game
plan as Pervis Estupinan deflected Jordan Henderson's cross into his own net
before Sadio Mane slotted in a second.

   The Reds remain on course for an unprecedented quadruple of Champions
League, Premier League, FA Cup and League Cup.

   And barring a huge upset when the sides meet again in southern Spain in
six days' time, Liverpool's season will finish with a third Champions League
final in five seasons in Paris on May 28.

   "It is 2-0 at half-time," said Liverpool boss Klopp. "You have to be
completely on alert, 100 percent in the right moment and play the second half
like we played the first. We know it will be a tricky atmosphere for us."

   In stark contrast to the free-flowing thrills of Manchester City's 4-3 win
over Real Madrid in the other semi-final, on Tuesday, Emery's men followed
the same tactic that saw them past Juventus and Bayern Munich by retreating
behind the ball.

   However, the Yellow Submarine could barely lay a glove on Klopp's men as
Liverpool just had to bide their time to make their dominance count.

   "The 2-0 is a clear, deserved result," said Emery. "It could have been
even worse but we still have a chance.

   "I want to show we are capable of playing a different game at home."

   - Shaky Rulli -

   The Reds have now scored 135 goals this season, but were held scoreless in
a frustrating first 45 minutes.

   Mane headed wide Mohamed Salah's pinpoint cross with the best opening.

   The Senegalese also saw a deflected effort fly just wide and Villarreal
goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli escaped unpunished with some sloppy handling from a
number of speculative efforts.

   Another long-range strike was the closest Liverpool came to breaking the
deadlock before the break as Thiago Alcantara's sweet strike clipped the
post.

   The six-time European champions started the second half at a higher tempo
and quickly began to punch holes in Villarreal's rearguard.

   Fabinho's goal was ruled out for offside against Virgil van Dijk in the
build-up.

   Moments later, Anfield erupted as the error-prone Rulli finally cost the
Spaniards with a feeble attempt at parrying Henderson's deflected cross.

   The last thing the visitors could afford was the floodgates opening, but
they were powerless to stop the waves of Liverpool attacks.

   Salah was the architect with a perfectly weighted pass for Mane to prod
past Rulli on 55 minutes. The offside flag came to Villarreal's rescue once
more to rule out Andy Robertson's strike.

   Emery was hailed the "king of the cups" by Klopp for his stunning Europa
League record, with one of his four triumphs in that competition coming as
Sevilla boss against the German during his first season at Liverpool in 2016.

   However, Liverpool are a different beast six years on and the limitations
of a side sitting seventh in La Liga were shown up as they struggled to mount
any sort of response to going behind.

   Luis Diaz smashed across the face of goal as Liverpool threatened to kill
the tie off with a third.

   The English giants had to settle for a two-goal advantage, but they are
yet to lose by a two-goal margin in 55 matches this season.