Liverpool’s fighters are slugging it out right to the final bell

IT WAS the day before the start of the season and Jurgen Klopp conjured a colourful analogy to set the tone. Liverpool, Klopp explained, were Rocky Balboa to Manchester City’s Ivan Drago, the seemingly invincible foe from the movie series. Not surprisingly, it brought a sardonic response from Pep Guardiola — ‘Thank you for that, Jurgen.’ You cannot compare Liverpool to Rocky in terms of their journey to the top. They spent huge money in 2018 to build a squad that could challenge for the title, so it is nonsense to have them regarded as some kind of plucky underdog. This expensively assembled squad has been built to win. But as Liverpool’s title challenge was on the line at St James’s Park, the final fight in

Rocky IV — in which Drago lands a succession of heavy blows to no avail — came to mind. Drago looks in disbelief at Rocky, climbing off the canvas, with a look that says, ‘How are you still standing?’ As Guardiola watched Divock Origi score in the final moments — the 24th Liverpool goal that has arrived after the 75th minute this season — to seal a 3-2 victory, he must have felt something similar. What must happen for City to finally shake them off? Liverpool, simply, will not go away. ‘It comes from the belief in the squad,’ said Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson (right). ‘We have great belief in i each other, no matter who plays or who comes on. ‘We’ll keep going right r to the end, no matter what happens and we’ve done that again. ‘It is big moments every e week and we’ve kept this race going right to the last game. You never know what can happen. h We just focus on winning games and we’ll w just see what happens. That was a big moment for us as we wanted to take it to the last game, which we’ve now managed to do.’ Liverpool had a job to do, and to their skipper’s relief, they did it. But how they did it was anything but straightforward. There was a feeling that Lionel Messi’s second goal in Barcelona’s 3-0 win would rip the heart out of Liverpool and lead to a hangover h on Tyneside. The physical effort on Wednesday was huge and there were moments when you looked at the players and felt this was a step too far. Without doubt, Liverpool were on their knees at times. Two equalisers conceded in front of a baying home crowd; the sight of Mohamed Salah leaving on a stretcher, to exacerbate the absence of Roberto Firmino. Still they were able to respond. Every question City have asked this season, Liverpool have answered. When Guardiola’s team have played first and been faultless, Klopp’s have never lost their footing. Rocky, of course, didn’t always win and Liverpool need to be prepared for the real prospect that they will end this fight as gallant losers. But what they have done is keep the pressure on City — pressure that will remain until the final bell. ‘We deserve something at the end of it but we’ve just got to keep going,’ said Henderson. ‘Whoever gets it will deserve it. We couldn’t have done any more and we’ve given everything. It’s going to the last game and we need to finish on a high at Anfield — then pray a miracle can happen.’