If Paris Saint-Germain’s players need enlightening as to the stadium in which they’re playing tonight, a famous sign in the tunnel as they walk out onto the pitch will offer a gentle reminder – ‘This Is Anfield’.
The French side take on Liverpool with the mission of overturning a 1-0 deficit from the first leg of their Champions League round-of-16 tie last week, a game in which Luis Enrique’s team were dominant but ended up on the receiving end of late sucker punch from Harvey Elliott.
Reports from France have shared some rather unflattering claims about the PSG players’ perception of their opponents following the game at the Parc des Princes, although one of their former midfielders has warned them of what to expect when they visit the Reds’ iconic stadium.
Ex-PSG player recounts febrile Anfield atmosphere
Vincent Guerin was playing with the Parisian outfit when they were beaten 2-0 at Anfield in the semi-finals of the 1997 European Cup Winners’ Cup, having almost had their 3-0 first-leg lead wiped out amid a cacophonous atmosphere on Merseyside.
The former France international recounted to L’Equipe: “When we conceded the second goal, there was an indescribable explosion in the stands. I then yelled something at Rai, who didn’t hear me. I didn’t hear what I was saying to him either because I had tinnitus.
“It’s the only stadium where I’ve experienced something like this. If ever at Anfield qualification is decided in the last minutes, they can turn into a nightmare for opponents.”
Will it be another memorable European night at Anfield?
The back catalogue of famous European nights at Anfield is an extensive one – Inter Milan 1965, Saint-Etienne 1977, Chelsea 2005 and 2007, Real Madrid 2009, Barcelona 2019, to name but a few.
Liverpool’s home ground isn’t always an impenetrable fortress in Europe, as Atalanta and both Madrid clubs have shown in recent years, but some of the sport’s greatest managers have gone on record to speak highly of the unique atmosphere which is generated at the stadium when it’s at its most raucous.
Some PSG players have been talking the talk after last week’s encounter, with Vitinha confidently declaring that his side will win tonight, but nothing can quite prepare them for how febrile all four stands will be when the clock approaches 8pm (and right throughout the subsequent two hours).
This is Liverpool’s first knockout Champions League match on home soil since Anfield was expanded to a 61,000-capacity venue, and we trust that everyone of a Reds persuasion will heed Virgil van Dijk’s pre-match call to play their part when they take their seats in a few hours’ time.
Let’s make it another European night to cherish on Merseyside!
