Sam Allardyce has predicted Liverpool to reach the final of the Champions League this season due to Jurgen Klopp learning how to win ugly.
The former Everton boss didn’t share whether he thought the Reds would be able to lift the trophy but seemed confident that the Premier League side would at least reach the final once again.
Allardyce made his prediction while delivering his verdict on Liverpool’s clash with Porto in which he highlighted defender Virgil van Dijk as being a key player.
“No opponent is easy at this stage but Liverpool have got the easiest of the ties,” Allardyce told the People’s print edition (Sunday April 7th, page 53).
“They’ll go through – and to the final in my eyes- because Jurgen Klopp has learned how to win ugly as well as flamboyantly…and they have defensive giant Virgil van Dijk.”
OPINION
Wow. It’s quite surprising to hear Allardyce back Liverpool to go all the way to the Champions League final, but clearly he has been impressed by the Reds this season. The former Toffees boss is right to suggest that Klopp has found a way to grind out wins this season and it has severed the Reds well. While last season the Reds wowed with their attacking flair, sometimes in their current campaign they’ve had no choice but to grind out 1-0 victories instead. It may not be the most pleasing thing to watch for supporters but if this tactic leads to the Reds winning either the Premier League or Champions League trophy, perhaps even both, no one is going to complain at Anfield. It’s also fair to say it’s no surprise Allardyce has highlighted Van Dijk in his verdict on the clash against Porto. The 27-year-old has been fantastic for the Reds this season and if he is at his best, the Portuguese giants will struggle to get a goal against the Reds.
