MATCH FACTS

This is the first ever European meeting between Liverpool and Rangers in any competition.

In all their European games, Rangers have only won one out of seven away games in England

(D2 L4) – beating Leeds United 2-1 in the Champions League qualifying phase in November 1992 thanks to goals from Gers heroes Mark Hateley and Ally Mccoist.

Liverpool’s last meeting with Scottish opponents in the European Cup was back in

1980-81, winning 5-0 on aggregate against Alex Ferguson’s

(right) Aberdeen (1-0 away, 4-0 home).

That year the Reds went on to win the competition.

There’s only been one instance of a Scottish side winning away against an English team in the European Cup or Champions League in seven attempts (D2 L4), with Celtic winning 1-0 at Leeds United in the first leg of the 1969-70 semi-final.

The Reds have won 13 of their last 15 home Champions League group stage matches (D1 L1), scoring 36 goals in those 13 victories. Their only defeat in this run was against Atalanta in November 2020.

Gers’ 4-0 defeat against Ajax on matchday one was their heaviest loss in a Champions League away game. Indeed, the Scottish side had only one shot on target compared to their rivals’ nine. They also had just four touches in the opposition box, compared to 43 from Ajax.

The average starting distance of Liverpool’s sequences of play in the Champions League this season have been higher up the field than any other team, with Jurgen Klopp’s side recovering the ball 50.2 metres from their own goal on average.

Rangers are still looking for their first goal in the Champions League this season, while they have never previously failed to score in their opening three games in the competition. Indeed, only Viktoria Plzen (2) and Sevilla (3) have had fewer shots on target than Rangers (4) across this season’s first two matchdays.

Kostas Tsimikas (below) has three assists in his last two home UEFA Champions League appearances for Liverpool (two v Benfica in April, one v Ajax). The only player to assist in three consecutive home appearances for the Reds in the competition is

Trent

Alexanderarnold (April –

October 2019).