Liverpool vs Sevilla. UEFA Europa League Final.
St Jakob-ParkAttendance34,429.
Wednesday 18 May 2016 19:46, UK
Liverpool take on Sevilla in the Europa League final in Basel on Wednesday night with a place in the group stage of next season's Champions League up for grabs for the winners.
Jurgen Klopp's side have endured an indifferent campaign in the Premier League, finishing eighth in the table, their lowest position since 2012.
As a result, the Reds will miss out on European football altogether next season if they fail to beat a Sevilla team that has won the competition in each of the past two years.
Klopp insists, however, that Sevilla's 2014 and 2015 triumphs mean nothing ahead of this year's final at St Jakob Park.
The German also believes Sevilla's Copa del Rey final against Barcelona on Sunday could "make a big difference" to the outcome of the game.
Sevilla, who are at least assured of a Europa League place next season courtesy of their seventh-place finish in La Liga, travel to Switzerland looking to make history by becoming the first club to win Europe's second-tier competition three times in a row.
Meanwhile, a fifth triumph overall for Sevilla - all within just 10 years - would also extend the record it holds over the likes of Liverpool, Juventus and Inter Milan, who have all won the competition on three occasions.
At the same time, victory for the Merseysiders at St Jakob Park would see them draw level with the Spaniards as the joint-most successful team in the UEFA Cup/Europa League's 45-year history.
But one perfect record has to end on Wednesday: Sevilla and Liverpool have won all seven UEFA Cup and Europa League finals they have played in.
Unai Emery's holders, though, have not won outside Spain all season long, a run that started back in August in Tbilisi when Barcelona won the UEFA Super Cup 5-4 after extra time.
Emery is banking on his player's mental resilience to become the first coach to win three consecutive Europa League trophies.
"The fact that this is our third consecutive final demonstrates how focused and hungry we have been to do well in the Europa League, and win it," he told Uefa.com.
"That means competing - standing up to be counted throughout the 90 minutes."
Team news
Liverpool have no new injury problems to worry about from the weekend, with Klopp having virtually a fully-fit squad to pick from, apart from suspended France centre-back Mamadou Sakho.
That means he must make a late decision on whether to start captain Jordan Henderson after the 25-year-old made his comeback following a five-week layoff with a knee injury with a 25-minute appearance against West Bromwich Albion on Sunday.
However, the midfielder is more likely to take his place on the substitutes' bench alongside Belgian forward Divock Origi, who is back ahead of schedule after damaging ankle ligaments in April's Merseyside derby.
No 2 goalkeeper Danny Ward, meanwhile, will also be on the bench after recovering from a knee problem.
Sevilla, meanwhile, arrive in Switzerland with no fresh injury concerns to contend with.
Opta stats
This is the first ever meeting between Liverpool and Sevilla.
It will be Liverpool's 12th major European final, having previously reached seven Champions League/European Cup finals, three Europa League/UEFA Cup finals and one in the Cup Winners Cup. They have won eight of them (73 per cent).
Liverpool have won each of their two European finals against Spanish opposition, beating Real Madrid in the 1981 European Cup and Alaves in the 2001 UEFA Cup.
Liverpool have never scored more than one goal away from Anfield in the Europa League this season.
Liverpool have had 11 different scorers in this season's Europa League, more than any other team.
Only one of the last 10 finals in the Europa League/UEFA Cup has seen the team scoring first not lift the trophy (Dnipro, against Sevilla in 2015).
In fact, Spanish clubs have won seven of the last 12 editions of the Europa League/UEFA Cup (Sevilla 4, Atlético Madrid 2, Valencia 1).
Sevilla have won three of their eight European games against English opposition (D2 L3), including a 4-0 win over Middlesbrough in the 2006 UEFA Cup final. Sevilla have won 13 of their last 18 games in the Europa League (D3 L2).
Sevilla played at St. Jakob Park earlier this campaign in the Europa League against Basel, drawing 0-0 in March.
Kevin Gameiro has had a hand in nine (seven goals, two assists) of Sevilla's 14 goals in this season's Europa League, including eight in his last five games (six goals, two assists).
Emre Can has attempted (41) and completed (34) more tackles than any other player in this season's Europa League.
Klopp has lost his last four finals: the Champions League with Borussia Dortmund in 2013 (v Bayern Munich), the German Cup in 2014 (v Bayern Munich) and 2015 (v Wolfsburg); the League Cup with Liverpool in 2016 (v Manchester City).
Betting
Liverpool are Sky Bet's 13/10 favourites ahead of their Europa League final showdown with holders Sevilla (21/10) and the draw, in 90 minutes, is a 23/10 shot.
Daniel Sturridge to score and Liverpool to win in normal time is now 7/2, one of nine Price Boosts.
Liverpool legend and Sky Sports' pundit Phil Thompson is backing Sturridge to net first in a 3-1 win for the Reds' at 30/1, while Charlie Nicholas is going for Sturridge in a 3-2 win at 110/1.
See all the big match odds and bet here.
