Liverpool host Galatasaray in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday evening, as they look to overturn a 1-0 deficit following the first leg in Türkiye last week. Mario Lemina's goal early in that game gave Galatasaray the lead, and eventually the win, as an increasingly ragged Liverpool performance was duly punished on the night.
At the weekend, Liverpool's season plunged to further lows, as they conceded an 89th-minute equaliser to Richarlison, giving a woefully out-of-form Tottenham Hotspur a point at Anfield, and putting a further dent to their hopes of qualifying for next season's Champions League.
Slot did hand out rests to the likes of Hugo Ekitike, Mohamed Salah, Ibrahima Konaté and Milos Kerkez for that game against Tottenham, and all of them are expected to come back into the side for this game. On the other hand, Galatasaray will want to correct a fairly poor away record in the Champions League this season, as they look to book a spot in the quarterfinals.
How to watch
The match will be broadcast on TNT Sports in the UK, Paramount+ in the U.S., SonyLiv in India and Stan Sport in Australia. You can also follow ESPN's live updates.
Key Details
Kick-off time: Wednesday, March 18 at 8:00 p.m. GMT (3:00 p.m. ET; 1:30 a.m. IST, Thursday, and 7:00 a.m. AEDT, Thursday)
Venue: Anfield, Liverpool
Referee: Szymon Marciniak (Poland)
VAR: Marco Di Bello (Italy)
Team news
Liverpool
Alexander Isak, F: ankle, OUT
Conor Bradley, D: knee, OUT
Wataru Endo, M: ankle, OUT
Giovanni Leoni, D: knee, OUT
Stefan Bajcetic, M: hamstring, OUT
Galatasaray
Metehan Baltaci, D: suspended, OUT
Enes Büyük, G: shoulder, OUT
Talking Points
A season-defining game for Liverpool
In a season where many might have expected to kick on to further heights after last season's Premier League title win, they have plunged into having a difficult season. They're fifth in the Premier League, and with a tough run-in looming, their spot in the Champions League spots is far from a certainty. In such a situation, going out of this season's Champions League in the round of 16 stage would represent another failure for Slot in a season that has become ridden with them.
The Champions League represents Liverpool's only hope of high-level success this season, even though they are still in the FA Cup, where they have a tough quarterfinal looming against Manchester City. Now, there's no certainty that Liverpool will progress beyond the next round even if they win this tie in the Champions League, but it would be an unqualified failure to go out of the competition against an opponent far-less fancied as Galatasaray are, compared to last season when Liverpool lost at the same stage of the competition, against eventual champions Paris Saint-Germain.
Can Liverpool's misfiring attack come to the party?
Hugo Ekitike hasn't scored in Liverpool's last four games, Mohamed Salah now has one goal in his last 14 Premier League appearances, even if he has two in his last four games in all competitions. Florian Wirtz has struggled for consistency in his opening season at Liverpool, while Cody Gakpo hasn't managed to regularly hit the heights of last season either.
Last week in Istanbul, Liverpool might have put in a concerning performance, but they had their chances, and if they were clinical, they probably wouldn't have the heights to climb that they now have to at Anfield this week. For them to climb that hill, they need goals, and they need to be a consistent threat in attack. Liverpool's attack has lacked clear patterns this season, has never had all of its players in form together all season, and too often, has needed moments of brilliance from the likes of Dominik Szoboszlai. Can Liverpool's attack produce a collective performance on a big Anfield night?
Galatasaray need to fix their European away form
Out of five away games in the Champions League this season, Galatasaray have won one and lost four. So, they're going to have to work against some history at Anfield on Wednesday night. Their solitary away win in Europe this season came against a struggling Ajax side in November. In the other four away games, they've lost 5-1 to Eintracht Frankfurt, 1-0 to Monaco, 2-0 to Manchester City, and 3-2 to Juventus.
While their win-loss record itself will provide encouragement for Liverpool and their fans, Galatasaray's defensive record is a huge concern for them too. They have conceded 11 goals in five away games this season. A defensive performance that lives up to those numbers isn't likely to be a winning one at Anfield, so they will have to be a lot better than they have been away from home this season.
Are Liverpool fans running out of patience?
Boos from a section of the Anfield crowd after Liverpool's draw against Spurs on Sunday showed that there is some resentment growing within the fanbase, as we approach the business end of what has been a poor season from Slot's team.
Usually, when the regular match-going fans turn against a team, it is a sign that the manager could be in a race against time to keep his job. So far, there are no real indications that Slot's job is under threat, but those questions about him and his team will only become a lot louder if Liverpool cannot turn this tie around.
What do the numbers say?
Galatasaray have kept three clean sheets in their last 33 European competition games, but two of those have come against Liverpool this season.
Galatasaray are targeting a first Champions League quarterfinal appearance since 2012-13.
Galatasaray have won two and lost two of their four previous two-legged ties against English opposition, while Liverpool have won two and lost one of their three such ties against Turkish teams.
Galatasaray have won only one of their 12 previous European away matches against English teams, drawing three and losing the other eight. Their only victory on English soil was a 3-2 win at Manchester United in the Champions League group stage a couple of seasons ago.
Galatasaray have won 14 of their 17 previous European ties after winning the first leg at home.