Liverpool survive almighty scare to reach Champions League final

Liverpool survived a huge scare before beating Villarreal 3-2 and advancing to their third Champions League final in five seasons.

Villarreal looked on their way to another stunning upset after opening a two-goal lead in the first half to cancel their 2-0 first-leg defeat, but the Spanish club wilted and Liverpool came from behind to go through 5-2 on aggregate in a thrilling contest.

The victory means they will contest the Champions League final on May 28 against Manchester City or Real Madrid, and can still win four trophies after already lifting the League Cup, and face Chelsea in the FA Cup final on May 14 and trail City by a point in the Premier League.

After Boulaye Dia and Francis Coquelin put Villarreal in command before half-time Fabinho, substitute Luis Diaz and Sadio Mane scored in the second half to propel Liverpool into the final for the first time since winning their sixth European title in 2019.

"Difficult, really difficult. We came here and they played very well first-half," defender Trent Alexander-Arnold told BT Sport. "We regrouped at half-time and got the game by the scruff of the neck. We did what we needed to do.

"We expected it but sometimes you can't control the game how you want to. They scored early doors, which is what they wanted to do. But we got it done."

Fabinho added: "They gave it everything in the first half. We knew the first 15 minutes would be really important. They scored early and it gave them confidence and the fans felt it.

"It was a hard first half for us, maybe the hardest of the season. But you have to be ready for everything and try to play football. After our first goal we controlled the game. That is it and we are in the final."

A game-changing impact ✨Take a bow,