Can Liverpool get one foot in the Champions League proper with a 1st leg play-off win over Hoffenheim?

The Reds seemed far from prepared during Saturday afternoon’s trip to Watford (who, remember, narrowly avoided relegation last season). It took Sadio Mane 20 minutes to counter Stefano Okaka’s early opener, only for Abdoulaye Doucoure to give the Hornets the lead less than 3 minutes later.



Roberto Firmino made it 2-2 from the penalty spot after the break, with the Reds’ flagship summer signing Mohamed Salah – who heads into Tuesday night at a healthy Player Performance spread of 50-55 – finally putting the visitors in front just before the hour mark. Yet Liverpool were denied the win by Miguel Britos, who bundled the ball over the line in the dying minutes of the game.

Though it would be too simple to blame the Philippe Coutinho-saga for Liverpool’s sloppy showing – they clearly have issues at the back, making the signing of Virgil van Dijk, or if needs be someone else, vital – the uncertainty surrounding the Brazilians future likely didn’t help the atmosphere before the weekend’s fixture. Frustratingly for Jurgen Klopp nothing will be sorted before Tuesday’s Champions League play-off, with Coutinho left out of the squad having recently turned in a transfer request.

As for Hoffenheim, after last season’s surprisingly 4th place finish – a huge improvement on 2015/16, where they avoided Bundesliga relegation by a single point – the German side will be looking to reach continent’s premier club competition for the first time in their history. Former Leicester-forward Andrej Kramaric – at a Super Mega PGM of 27-32 – is the one to watch, the Croatian scoring 18 goals in all competitions in 2016/17 (comparatively, Liverpool’s top scorer was the aforementioned Coutinho with 14).

The 2017/18 Bundesliga season doesn’t begin until this weekend, meaning Hoffenheim will ostensibly be fresher than their Scouse opponents. That, combined with the Reds’ weak start, makes Tuesday’s tie tighter than one imagines Klopp would like, with Spreadex offering a Liverpool/Hoffenheim (h) Goal Supremacy spread of 0.15-0.35 alongside a Total Goals spread of 2.85-3.05.