Liverpool: A place in the Champions League semifinals secured. The dream of an unprecedented quadruple of trophies still intact. Key players rested amid a hectic schedule.
Liverpool is in a good place entering the home straight of what could turn out to be the club's greatest ever season.
Even conceding two late goals to draw 3-3 at home to Benfica couldn't take the smile of Jurgen Klopp's face.
"The day we qualify for the semifinals of the Champions League and I'm not happy, please come here and knock me out," the Liverpool manager said Wednesday after seeing his team advance from the quarterfinals 6-4 on aggregate.
With Liverpool inflicting significant damage by winning the first leg 3-1 in Lisbon last week, Klopp was confident enough to rest stars like Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold for a return match against Benfica that turned into a wild, end-to-end contest at Anfield.
Roberto Firmino's second-half double put Liverpool 3-1 ahead on the night and 6-2 ahead on aggregate, only for Klopp's team to ease off the pace.
Benfica took advantage by getting behind Liverpool's makeshift defense to score through substitute Roman Yaremchuk and rising star Darwin N ez, but the gap was too much to make up.
"It was pretty comfortable," Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson said, "but we're disappointed with the goals we conceded."
Ultimately, Liverpool has coasted into the last four of Europe's top club competition and is there for the 12th time tying the record for an English team with Manchester United and the first since the last of its six title triumphs in 2019.
Villarreal awaits Liverpool in the last four. Despite the Spanish team eliminating both Juventus and Bayern Munich and its coach, Unai Emery, being a master strategist of European competitions, it's pretty much a dream scenario for Klopp and his team.
The quadruple of major trophies might really be on for Liverpool, already the winner of the English League Cup, currently in second place in Premier League just a point behind Manchester City and into the semifinals of
the FA Cup.