Apart from a 3-1 defeat against Arsenal on February 5th, Liverpool hasn’t lost any other matches in 2024. They have achieved 12 victories (including a 1-0 win against Chelsea in extra time at the League Cup final) and only one draw in all competitions. On away turf, Klopp’s team has only lost 1 out of 6 matches in 2024 (with 4 wins and 1 draw).

Therefore, Liverpool is fully confident as they travel to Sparta Praha’s Epet ARENA and aims to secure a commanding advantage before the second leg at Anfield in a week’s time.

Meanwhile, the home team, Sparta Praha, has had an unimpressive run in 2024. They have played 7 official matches, winning 4, drawing 2, and losing 1. This performance falls below the expectations of their fans. Especially, the recent back-to-back draws have made Sparta Praha supporters apprehensive about hosting Liverpool.

Even though Sparta Praha has put on decent performances in Europe this season, particularly against Galatasaray and Betis, Liverpool is not an opponent they can defeat this time.

Sparta Praha, as the home team, doesn’t have many injury concerns for the first leg of the Europa League round of 16 against Liverpool, except for the absence of midfield duo Jakub Pesek and David Pavelka. Although midfielder Angelo Preciado received a red card in the draw against Slavia Praha last weekend, it won’t affect his participation in this match.

As for Liverpool, they still have a lineup filled with established names such as Joel Matip, Ben Doak, Curtis Jones, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Stefan Bajcetic, Thiago Alcantara, Diogo Jota, and Alisson Becker. However, manager Jurgen Klopp may once again place trust in young players like Jarell Quansah, James McConnell, Bobby Clark, and Kaide Gordon.

Additionally, there’s a high possibility that the German coach will deploy some experienced players like Alexis Mac Allister, Cody Gakpo, and Luis Diaz as guests in the Czech Republic this time.