Origi draws it for Klopp
Liverpool survived a second-half onslaught from Borussia Dortmund to come away with a vital 1-1 draw in the Europa League quarter-final first leg on Thursday.
|||Liverpool survived a second-half onslaught from Borussia Dortmund to come away with a vital 1-1 draw in the Europa League quarter-final first leg in Germany on Thursday night.
Belgian striker Divock Origi fired the Reds into the lead against the run of play when a lovely chip by classy midfielder Philippe Coutinho was flicked on by England international James Milner into Origi’s path.
The 20-year-old, though, had a lot of work to do, but held off two defenders just inside the Dortmund box and let rip with a right-footed shot past goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller in the 36th minute.
It was the perfect start for Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp upon his return to his former team at the Signal Iduna Park in Germany, where he was idolised following a highly successful time at Dortmund.
And it could’ve been an even better night for the German just before halftime when Origi was put through on goal by a superb Alberto Moreno pass, but instead of slamming the ball into the net, he tried to chip the advancing Weidenfeller, who did just enough to close down the Liverpool striker as the ball struck him on the head.
It was a huge let-off for the home side, and they took full advantage three minutes after the break when captain Mats Hummels jumped high and beat Adam Lallana in the air from a Henrikh Mkhitaryan cross off a short corner.
The ball was flying into the top and even a despairing dive from Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet was not enough as he got a glove to it, but couldn’t prevent the equaliser.
The Reds hit back strongly after that and had three outstanding chances to go ahead just three minutes later.
First Coutinho’s shot was well-saved by Weidenfeller, and in the same move, right back Nathaniel Clyne’s pile-driver from 25 yards was brilliantly knocked away by the Dortmund shot-stopper.
But the danger hadn’t been cleared by the defence, and Coutinho had another crack at it, with Weidenfeller standing strong to block the shot with his legs.
Dortmund went into overdrive on attack in the last half-an-hour, with Klopp’s men just looking to hold out and ensure they go back to Merseyside with a draw and an away goal.
Marco Reus, prolific Gabon forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Mkhitaryan all had opportunities to grab the winner, but Liverpool’s defence was solid enough to clinch a crucial stalemate.
The return leg at Anfield will take place next Thursday, April 14.
There were 2-1 score-lines in the three other quarter-finals on the night, with away victories for Ukrainian outfit Shakhtar Donetsk over Sporting Braga in Portugal and Sevilla against fellow Spaniards Athletic Bilbao, while another Spanish club in Villarreal got past Sparta Prague from the Czech Republic.
ashfak.mohamed@inl.co.za
@IndyCapeSport