PARIS: A point separates the two in a tantalisingly close Premier League title race. They face each other in the semi-final of the FA Cup on Saturday. And they could still meet in the Champions League final on May 28.

But for Manchester City and Liverpool to meet in the European Cup climax in Paris at the end of the season, they still have to confirm their berths in the semi-finals. That will be known on Wednesday when the two sides play the second legs of their respective quarter-final ties.

That will put them one step away from a mouthwatering final clash to be crowned European champions in a season where their rivalry has transcended any other. One of these teams will win the Premier League after a riveting clash between them on Sunday ended in a 2-2 draw. One of them will go into the FA Cup final as the heavy favourites.

And then there is the Champions League where Premier League leaders City are chasing a title which has proved elusive. Pep Guardiola’s side, bidding to become the first English side since city rivals Manchester United in 1999 to win the treble, travel to Atletico Madrid holding a 1-0 lead from the first leg at home.

Juergen Klopp’s Liverpool, chasing an unprecedented quadruple of titles with the League Cup already in the bag, have one foot in the last four after winning the first leg of their tie with Benfica 3-1 in Portugal.

And so, naturally, at Klopp’s pre-match news conference on Tuesday there was more discussion on the FA Cup semi-final rather than the Benfica clash at Anfield.

Klopp insisted the City clash will have no impact on his team selection on Wednesday.

“The next game has no influence on the line up for tomorrow but the last game [in the Premier League] has so we have to see,” Klopp said.

“There is nobody injured as far as I know but we need to look at who is fresh enough for this game. We see it as a super important game to us. We tried so hard last year to qualify for the Champions League and now we can make it to semis, which is incredible.”

As for Liverpool’s ongoing bid for the quadruple, Klopp said: “We are part of four competitions, and thankfully we are good enough this year not to go out early. We just try to squeeze everything out of every competition. Some are possible, we will see.”

Klopp’s side are in a rich vein of form having lost only once in their last 22 games in all competitions, winning 18 times.

“The main target is again being the one team no one wants to play,” Klopp said. “Really aggressive in a football sense, defending well, knowing more about the way they play.”

Guardiola, meanwhile, was taken by surprise at City’s news conference by club captain Fernandinho’s disclosure that he will leave the club at the end of the season.

But the attention then shifted to Diego Simeone’s Atletico, who would be bidding to put City out of contention for the prize they desperately crave.

“It will be slightly different there than it was in Manchester,” Guardiola, whose side prevailed in the first leg thanks to Kevin de Bruyne’s winner, said on Tuesday. “There will be moments we will have to be ready to defend. They are so intense. They have incredible support for the team and manager.

“We need to create chances. We know Atletico Madrid in the knockout stage is so, so difficult. We will try. We travel [to Madrid] with a sure result and intention to win the game. We have to play our game. We have done these years.”

Atletico are the anti-thesis to the type of artistic football Guardiola preaches and came under heavy criticism for their overly defensive gameplan that yielded no attempts on goal in the first leg.

But manager Simeone insisted that his side won’t deviate from their usual style.

“Since I started coaching in 2005, if I’m not mistaken I have never criticised a colleague of mine. Never,” Simeone said in a press conference on Tuesday.

“I believe there are different ways of playing to get what you want from each match but when somebody criticises a colleague, I don’t get involved. But that is always former players or coaches that decide to run their mouths to get people’s attention. I just ignore them.

“There are several ways to play, I choose one, but you have to respect your colleagues. Always, always, always.”

Simeone said that his team, who reached Champions League finals in 2014 and 2016, have an identity and will stick with it, despite having to win in order to qualify for the semi-finals.

“We’re up against a team that plays very well. A very good positional game, but we’re hopeful. It’s clear that hope alone isn’t enough, but we’re going to try to take the game where we can hurt them,” the Argentine added.

“We’re not going to stray too far from we do best. Hopefully we can combine better, have quicker transitions, counter-attacks, and our key players can have fantastic nights. From there it will be about moments. Anything can happen.”

Published in Dawn, April 13th, 2022