Villarreal

Villarreal is only seventh in the Spanish league, nine points from the final qualification place.

The game will be live streamed on fuboTV, which offers a free trial. There are also question marks over Francis Coquelin and Raul Albiol. The modest club ousted Juventus and Bayern Munich on its way to a surprise semifinal appearance. Like all cord-cutting alternatives, there are plenty of options, especially for sports. Liverpool is looking to reach its third Champions League final in five seasons. The game will be live streamed on fuboTV, which offers a free trial.

Liverpool's Luis Diaz (second right) celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during the Champions League semifinal, second leg against Villarreal. (CNN) ...

Spurred by Diaz's introduction, Liverpool looked a different side after the interval. Within 10 minutes, the tie was over. Capoue again turned provider to draw Villarreal level in the tie five minutes before the break.

Get a report of the Villarreal vs. Liverpool 2021-22 UEFA Champions League, Semifinals football match.

I'm sure it'll be a good game," Alexander-Arnold said. "We never tend to make these Champions League semis easy for ourselves," Alexander-Arnold said. Liverpool were left frustrated throughout the remainder of the first half -- failing to get a single shot on target -- and saw Villarreal double their lead just before the break when Francis Coquelin scored from an exquisite glancing header to level the tie on aggregate.

Outplayed for a half, Liverpool scored three goals to reach its latest Champions League final. For Villarreal, though, all was not lost.

There was a common root to the pride and the pain: At times, an aching wound can feel like a badge of honor. In an era defined and designed by Goliath, it would be this team, constructed on a shoestring, that did what Ajax and Monaco and RB Leipzig could not and made it all the way. Villarreal beat Juventus in Turin in the round of 16. Villarreal would be the smallest town, by some distance, to send a team to the biggest game in soccer. If the sense of occasion that ordinarily accompanies the most seismic games in Europe’s calendar was missing outside, it was palpable inside. Perhaps, in hindsight, it would have been easier had Villarreal not heard that siren call of possibility. Snatches of songs, in both English and Spanish, echoed around the streets. As Liverpool enjoyed a rare moment of calm after a storm of an evening, and put the finishing touches on its 3-2 victory, the rest of the stadium noticed what was happening in the corner, and picked up the tune. The return leg was, more than anything, an administrative hurdle to be cleared, a form to be completed. The scarves started to twist and to whirl, the mood shifting from regret at what had been snatched away to celebration of all that remained. Indeed, quite how much it hurt was, perhaps, the best measure of quite how close Unai Emery’s Villarreal had come. And then, when the whistle blew and it was all over, as Villareal’s players walked mournfully around the stadium, heads bowed and eyes raw, the tempo quickened.

Liverpool booked their place in the UEFA Champions League final but they did it the hard way against Villarreal. Watch the goals from their 3-2 win in ...

But the Reds were 3-2 ahead on the night just 18 minutes later after a quick-fire treble. And he did so again to set up Coquelin's equalizer. But Klopp's quadruple chasers woke up after half-time as goals from Fabinho, Luis Diaz and Sadio Mane saw them win the match 3-2 and the semi-final 5-2 on aggregate.

Villarreal CF briefly wrote themselves into UEFA Champions League history on Tuesday by producing a magnificent 2-0 first half display against Liverpool ...

The Basque tactician tasted infamous Champions League capitulation in Barcelona with Paris Saint-Germain in the past and this was nowhere near the same sort of collapse. In fact, it was not until Fabinho struck in the 62nd minute that the hosts' dream started to fade with Geronimo Rulli once again questionable as the Premier League giants found the net. First to every ball and with enormous hunger, Villarreal beat Liverpool into retreat and halftime could not come quickly enough for the Reds, who failed to muster a single shot on target. Ultimately losing to arguably Europe's best side is nothing to be ashamed of, though -- the La Liga outfit can hold their heads up high as they fight to secure a European return between now and the end of the season. Given no chance pre-game, Villarreal were the better side for the first half of the second leg after holding Liverpool scoreless for nearly an hour in the first. It was the stuff dreams are made of at Estadio de la Ceramica as Etienne Capoue turned provider twice to tee up Boulaye Dia for an early lead and then Francis Coquelin for the crucial leveler.

Man City look to keep Real's Karim Benzema from exploiting any lack of control.

Villarreal are not a team that deals well with the pressure of being behind, indeed in the 20 La Liga and Champions League matches in which they have been losing this season their record reads one win, six draws and 13 defeats. Trent Alexander-Arnold's rapid switches of play and balls down the line were a key feature of the Reds' first leg success, how much more successful might they be if he is not having to thread the needle between a full back and the nominal winger who is stationed a few feet ahead of him. In the smaller sample size of European matches it is 0.02 and they had not come up against a team like Liverpool before last week. It should also be noted that without Benrahma in the side all three of the corners Filip Kostic took for Frankfurt were only cleared as far as a different player in white. Indeed, one might argue that in dragging Klopp's side into such a fiddly match for an hour Villarreal achieved more than should be reasonably expected from a team of their means. Moyes' side have now conceded 10 such goals in the Premier League this season, firmly in the middle of the pack, with four of them coming since the start of April. Not so coincidentally this has coincided with the period where the Hammers have been forced to chop and change their back line on the fly thanks to a myriad of injuries. Gabriel Martinelli has time to take a touch, get the ball out from under his feet and clip a delivery to the back post for Gabriel to head in. Nine of their Premier League assists have come from dead balls, the most in the top flight along with Manchester City. They have four in the Europa League. No other team has scored more than two. Onto the Europa League, where last week's suggestion that English clubs are about to sweep the board in every competition is looking more than a bit dicey. Last Tuesday the visitors had no answer for City's sustained possession play but put Fernandinho in front of Vinicius Junior and they could find a devastating moment. Every one of Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and even a victorious City have been baffled at how the score looks quite how it does when the final whistle blows. In the UEFA Champions League, Europa League and Conference League (catch all the action on CBS and Paramount+) a place in a major final is just 90 minutes away.

Villarreal fans stayed on their feet cheering at the La Cerámica Stadium long after the match ended.

Returning to the Champions League may be hard for Villarreal, though. He has four Europa League trophies in his career, including with Villarreal last season. “But we’ll just continue to try and do things the way we have done them. “We really wanted to give our fans their first Champions League final, and it hurts that we were not able to do it,” veteran Villarreal defender Raúl Albiol said. Villarreal won the Europa League for its first major title last season, beating Manchester United in the final. It’s a good project that allows us to experience moments like these.”

Liverpool will finish the job while Man City look to keep Real's Karim Benzema from exploiting any lack of control.

It should also be noted that without Benrahma in the side all three of the corners Filip Kostic took for Frankfurt were only cleared as far as a different player in white. Moyes' side have now conceded 10 such goals in the Premier League this season, firmly in the middle of the pack, with four of them coming since the start of April. Not so coincidentally this has coincided with the period where the Hammers have been forced to chop and change their back line on the fly thanks to a myriad of injuries. Gabriel Martinelli has time to take a touch, get the ball out from under his feet and clip a delivery to the back post for Gabriel to head in. Nine of their Premier League assists have come from dead balls, the most in the top flight along with Manchester City. They have four in the Europa League. No other team has scored more than two. Onto the Europa League, where last week's suggestion that English clubs are about to sweep the board in every competition is looking more than a bit dicey. Last Tuesday the visitors had no answer for City's sustained possession play but put Fernandinho in front of Vinicius Junior and they could find a devastating moment. Villarreal are not a team that deals well with the pressure of being behind, indeed in the 20 La Liga and Champions League matches in which they have been losing this season their record reads one win, six draws and 13 defeats. Every one of Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and even a victorious City have been baffled at how the score looks quite how it does when the final whistle blows. Trent Alexander-Arnold's rapid switches of play and balls down the line were a key feature of the Reds' first leg success, how much more successful might they be if he is not having to thread the needle between a full back and the nominal winger who is stationed a few feet ahead of him. In the smaller sample size of European matches it is 0.02 and they had not come up against a team like Liverpool before last week. Indeed, one might argue that in dragging Klopp's side into such a fiddly match for an hour Villarreal achieved more than should be reasonably expected from a team of their means. In the UEFA Champions League, Europa League and Conference League (catch all the action on CBS and Paramount+) a place in a major final is just 90 minutes away.

Villarreal's fans were starting to dream of Paris but the introduction of Luis Díaz in the second half changed the Champions League semi-final second leg.

In a flash, a click of the fingers, it was gone. As it turned out, no, they couldn’t but for a moment they had really thought they would. They had come a long way. That was the good news for Villarreal. The bad news was that they had done so much so fast that, like Liverpool, they had a decision to make. There was also, it may be as cruel to mention as it would be unrealistic not to, the goalkeeper that stood behind them. Level now, they had something to lose, something to hold. Oh, they had suffered, that was for sure, and they had reacted too. Francis Coquelin, supposedly a defensive midfielder, was dashing behind the full-backs. Only, much as Liverpool were two goals down for the first time, they weren’t defeated yet and, as Unai Emery had warned, this is a side that can hurt you a thousand ways. Villarreal overran Liverpool, the intensity that had inhibited them before matched now. A second followed after 41, that quiet blown away, belief flooding through them, the noise making this a special night, even ultimately in defeat. It had all seemed so unlikely.

Unai Emery has explained Villarreal's drop-off in the second half of their Champions League semi-final defeat to Liverpool.

“We’ve run out of energy. “Defending strongly and for them not to position themselves. In the second half, the Yellows noticeably lost momentum, failing to keep up their tight press and high energy that suffocated Liverpool in the first half.

Get a report of the Villarreal vs. Liverpool 2021-22 UEFA Champions League, Semifinals football match.

I'm sure it'll be a good game," Alexander-Arnold said. "We never tend to make these Champions League semis easy for ourselves," Alexander-Arnold said. Liverpool were left frustrated throughout the remainder of the first half -- failing to get a single shot on target -- and saw Villarreal double their lead just before the break when Francis Coquelin scored from an exquisite glancing header to level the tie on aggregate.