Simone Inzaghi's pre-match interview had revealed an interesting statistic to a lot of fans.
The combined market value of Liverpool's starting eleven was €600 million higher than Inter Milan's, and that €600 million alone was worth more than Inter's entire squad.
Yet Inter were still the favorites.
"That's exactly why smaller clubs can sometimes beat bigger ones. Market value isn't based solely on ability."
"If two players are equally good, a twenty-year-old will obviously be worth more than a thirty-year-old. Even if the twenty-year-old is slightly worse at the time, his market value could still be higher."
"But Inter Milan have already proven how strong they are in Serie A, and Simone Inzaghi has already molded this Inter side into his team."
"So in this first leg of the Champions League knockout stage at Inter's home ground, either side could win."
Scholes wasn't backing Inter Milan or Liverpool.
On January 6, Leo arrived at Inter's stadium.
There were already plenty of fans outside greeting the players, and Leo could hear some Inter supporters calling his name.
Outside the stadium were posters featuring Inter's eleven starters, one of the ways the club was building excitement for the match.
"Goalkeeper: Handanović."
"Defenders: Škriniar, de Vrij, Bastoni."
"Midfielders: Dumfries, Vidal, Brozović, Çalhanoğlu, Dimarco."
"Forwards: Lautaro Martínez and Džeko!"
Compared with the side that had faced Tottenham, Salah remained on the right wing, while Diaz started on the left and Núñez led the line.
The midfield trio was Szoboszlai, Rodri, and Leo. Klopp had chosen not to start Mac Allister.
Robertson started at left back, Van Dijk and Konaté at center back, and Gvardiol at right back.
"Klopp has left Mac Allister out, which means Liverpool are relying on Rodri to control possession by himself. Szoboszlai will definitely get forward more often because his style is very different from Mac Allister's."
"So Klopp hasn't come here looking for a draw. Liverpool want to beat Inter Milan on their own ground!"
Gullit knew Klopp tended to be bold with his tactics in Champions League matches.
But considering Inter's recent performances, especially those of Lautaro Martínez, who had scored so many goals at home, Liverpool's approach could also leave them vulnerable to conceding.
Leo had never played against Inter Milan before.
This was his first time.
Over the previous few seasons, Inter had not been strong enough to return to the Champions League knockout stage. Now that they were back and looking so formidable, Leo was genuinely happy to see it.
"Some of you might never have played in a Champions League knockout match before, but once today's game is over, you'll realize it isn't all that different from playing in the Premier League."
"If anything, playing in Italy might feel more comfortable than playing in Manchester. The weather here is certainly nicer."
Leo thought back to all the times Liverpool had traveled to Manchester.
Whether they were facing Manchester City or Manchester United, rainy, overcast weather seemed to be the norm.
Italy was different.
Ever since arriving, Leo had found the weather pleasantly comfortable.
He didn't know how well prepared Inter were, but Liverpool had done a good job with their own preparations.
Núñez had spent a lot of time watching videos of Lautaro Martínez's goals.
"Maybe you should study the way Lautaro connects his sprint with his first touch. He's always able to strike the ball while moving at high speed and turn it directly into a shot."
"A lot of his finishes come without taking a touch to settle the ball. He hits it while it's still rolling and sends it straight toward goal. That's one of the reasons he scores so often."
Inter's home crowd was ready to watch their team face Liverpool.
Simone Inzaghi always stood on the touchline in a comfortable-looking suit, appearing so relaxed that he looked less like he was managing a match and more like he was enjoying the Italian sunshine.
Klopp, meanwhile, almost never wore a suit while managing.
Yet today, he had put one on as well, almost as though he wanted to see whether he or Inzaghi looked better in one.
Looking at Klopp in his suit, Leo still thought his usual black tracksuit suited him better.
But he didn't exactly want to say something that might damage Klopp's confidence.
Instead, during the warm-up, Leo simply took Klopp's cap off his head.
"Klopp, if you absolutely insist on wearing this sports cap, you might as well forget the suit. Your hair looks good."
Zubizarreta put Klopp's cap on his own head.
"Leo, do I look better with the cap?"
Leo studied Zubizarreta carefully.
"Zubizarreta, sometimes I really struggle with figuring out how not to say something hurtful, so could you please not ask me questions like that?"
Klopp burst out laughing.
Krawietz snatched the cap off Zubizarreta's head, while Liverpool's players continued warming up without the slightest sign of nerves, despite being surrounded by Inter supporters.
The warm-up ended.
Liverpool and Inter Milan took the field, and the 2021-22 UEFA Champions League Round of 16 kicked off at Inter's home ground.
As soon as the match began, Dimarco started helping defend Leo exactly as expected.
Leo watched Dimarco, then Vidal shadowing him from behind, while constantly moving toward Çalhanoğlu.
Even with Inter assigning midfielders to mark him, Leo still intended to keep Çalhanoğlu under pressure.
After all, Çalhanoğlu had provided far too many assists for Lautaro Martínez in Serie A.
In the eighth minute.
"Çalhanoğlu can't get on the ball!"
"Vidal and Dimarco are both marking Leo, but Leo keeps moving toward Çalhanoğlu. Now nobody on Inter wants to risk passing to him!"
De Vrij began looking for long passes from the back.
Like Van Dijk, he was a Dutch center back with an extremely accurate long ball.
Leo had always considered de Vrij one of the best center backs in football that season.
De Vrij launched a long pass from the back toward Džeko, who had transferred from Manchester City to Inter.
Džeko controlled it and laid it back to Brozović.
Brozović already had Lautaro in mind as his target.
As soon as he received Džeko's pass, he sent the ball diagonally forward to the left.
Lautaro Martínez broke away from Van Dijk.
"Excellent combination between the pass and the run!"
"Lautaro Martínez shoots!"
As Brozović's pass rolled into Lautaro's path, Lautaro struck it first time toward goal.
Alisson made a textbook near-post save to keep it out.
"Lautaro Martínez is as fired up as ever at home for Inter!"
"That shot alone should be enough to remind Liverpool just how dangerous Lautaro can be!"
...
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