Talking pointsReds equal semi-final record, Firmino joins coveted list and Konate strikes again

The Reds notched a 6-4 aggregate win over their Portuguese visitors thanks to an Ibrahima Konate header and a Roberto Firmino brace.

Goncalo Ramos, Roman Yaremchuk and Darwin Nunez all found the back of the net for the Lisbon outfit, though they were unable to overturn a two-goal deficit from the first leg.

Here are five talking points on the action…

Record-equalling semi-final

Thanks to the two-legged aggregate victory, Liverpool reached the club’s 20th European semi-final.

The Reds equalled the record for an English club by earning a 12th European Cup-specific final-four appearance.

A potentially good omen for Jürgen Klopp and his squad is that on two other previous occasions when they have passed Benfica in the competition they have gone on to lift the trophy (1978 and 1984).

Squad proves its worth

Seven changes were made for the visit of Benfica to L4.

“I’m really happy with the line-up. I’m really happy with the set-up. I really think this is a team [that] will go for it,” Klopp said ahead of kick-off.

The boss was later proved right as his side secured a semi-final berth thanks to a thrilling draw.

Liverpool face a hectic schedule, with Wednesday’s second-leg quarter-final clash sandwiched in between two meetings with Manchester City in separate competitions.

Klopp has been open and honest about the need to utilise his squad throughout the closing stages of the campaign.

The depth of the Anfield ranks will continue to play a crucial role, especially amid a battle for an unprecedented quadruple.

Konate strikes again

Just eight days on from his first Liverpool goal, Konate struck again.

In an almost identical goal to the reverse fixture at Estadio da Luz, the centre-back leapt highest at a corner – this time from Kostas Tsimikas – to score the opening goal of the night.

The 22-year-old bagged his first goal for the club in Lisbon last week and followed up with a first Anfield effort.

Konate became the fourth Liverpool player to score in both legs of a Champions League quarter-final tie behind Peter Crouch (2006-07), Mohamed Salah (2017-18) and Firmino (2018-19).

Firmino into double figures

Firmino’s timely second-half brace helped ensure passage into the final four.

The Brazilian reached 11 goals for the season with two calm finishes from inside the box.

He moved onto 20 Champions League goals for the Reds overall, becoming only the fourth player to make that list behind Steven Gerrard (21), Sadio Mane (22) and Salah (33).

Firmino also made it seven goals in seven games against Portuguese opposition – and it was also his first European goals on home soil since March 2020.

Villarreal stand in the way

Liverpool are now a two-legged semi-final away from reaching the Champions League’s showpiece event.

Standing in between the Reds and a place in Paris at the Stade de France on May 28 is Spanish side Villarreal.

Unai Emery saw his team impressively dispose of Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals on Tuesday to set up a final-four tie with Klopp’s men.

Liverpool’s only meeting with the La Liga outfit came in 2016, when they secured a 3-1 aggregate win in the semi-finals of the Europa League.