Liverpool emphatically secured their place in the Champions League final by making light work of Roma at the Stadio Olimpico.
Early strikes from Sadio Mane and Gini Wijnaldum put the game beyond doubt, despite an unfortunate own-goal from James Milner a strike from Edin Dzeko and a late screamer from Radja Nainggolan, giving Klopp’s side a 7-5 victory across two-legs.
Liverpool will now meet Real Madrid in the Champions League final on May 26th, while Roma will aim to consolidate a top-three spot in Serie A.
Here, Sportsmail brings you a round-up of all the things you may have missed in Rome.
The entire Liverpool squad held up a banner paying tribute to Sean Cox at full-time
Sean Cox tributes
Fans around the Stadio Olimpico paid tribute to Sean Cox.
Cox, 53, was the victim of an unprovoked attack ahead of the first leg of the semi-final last week. He sustained a severe bleed to the head and remains in an induced coma at Walton Hospital in Liverpool.
Around the stadium, there were plenty of banners in tribute to Cox that emblazoned the club’s ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ slogan, while Roma also paid tribute, by wearing ‘Forza Sean’ shirts in training as a show of support.
Fans paid tribute to Sean Cox, 53, who was the victim of an unprovoked attack at Anfield
Jordan Henderson holds up a tribute to Sean Cox at the end of the match as a show of support
Roma lose defensive record
Until Sadio Mane struck in the opening stages, Roma hadn’t conceded a single goal at home this season in the Champions League.
Eusebio Di Francesco’s side nearly finished the campaign as the only side not to have conceded a goal at home in the Champions League, boasting clean sheets against Chelsea, Atletico Madrid and Barcelona.
But that record came crashing down as Sadio Mane tucked home an opener to put the game beyond the reach of the Italians. Before Mane’s strike, the last time Roma conceded a goal in the Champions League was in the qualification rounds of last year’s tournament, against Porto in August 2016.
Their form away from the Stadio Olimpico has proven to be problematic in Europe, as Roma have only avoided defeat in two of their six matches outside of Italy, leaking 16 goals along the way, with nine of those coming in their last two trips to Barcelona and Liverpool.
Sadio Mane slotted home the opener at the Stadio Olimpico to give the Reds breathing space
Roberto Firmino breaks new ground
Without gaudy stats, a neutral may well dismiss a striker’s value if said player doesn’t score or assist often. Roberto Firmino previously operated in this grey space, a player whose work rate was never questioned but also someone who doesn’t present as an immediate candidate to score 30 goals in a season.
All that changed in 2017-18, as Firmino isn’t just heralded for his strong work ethic but also for his goal contributions too. After teeing up Sadio Mane, the former Hoffenheim man became the first player in the last decade to register at least seven goals and seven assists in the same Champions League campaign.
For the season, Firmino has scored 15 Premier League goals and added a further 10 strikes in Europe, firmly dismissing the notion that he doesn’t have the output to match his stellar work-rate.
Roberto Firmino celebrates teeing up Sadio Mane as Liverpool scored a crucial away goal
Wijnaldum finally scores on the road
Georginio Wijnaldum has finally broken a peculiar record that has followed him around since his time at Newcastle. The Dutch midfielder has finally scored an away goal in a competitive match.
Bundling home Liverpool’s second was Wijnaldum for his first-ever goal away from home since moving to England in 2015-16.
It was also his first away goal at club level since May 2015, and he couldn’t have picked a better to end his drought, celebrating with Andreas Kornmayer, the German fitness coach who has worked closely with the midfielder throughout the season.
The Dutch midfielder celebrates his goal with fitness coach Andreas Kornmayer
Anfield lights up
When someone brings up the idea of a ‘European semi-final at Anfield’, a packed stadium and deafening atmosphere under the floodlights comes to mind.
Against Roma, those iconic traits of Liverpool’s historic stadium were still on display, despite there being no live football to watch, as Anfield opened its doors to fans for them to watch the second-leg on the stadium’s big screens.
Liverpool fans watched the second-leg clash against Roma on the big screens at Anfield
SFM > MSN?
The deadliest attacking trio in world football has in recent years, been a label exclusively reserved for La Liga talents.
Depending on your preference, if asked to state the world’s best front-three, you might say Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez or Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema.
Nowadays, the world’s most-feared front-three speak for themselves and have the stats to match. Liverpool’s opening goal was the 29th Champions League goal scored by the trio of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino this season, a new competition record.
Before ‘SFM’ scored 29 goals, the previous record was held by Ronaldo, Bale and Benzema (28) and Messi, Neymar and Suarez (27).
Jurgen Klopp’s front-three have been deadly in the Champions League, striking again in Rome
Mohamed Salah’s quiet night in Rome didn’t matter as his strike partners combined to score
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