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Paul Currie
AS IT HAPPENED

As it happened: Liverpool v Augsburg, Europa League last 32 second leg

Jurgen Klopp’s side scraped through to the next round with a 1-0 win.

How do you see this one panning out?

There are three English teams in action tonight of course, and they’re all at home.

Manchester United host Danish side FC Midtjylland with a 2-1 deficit to turn around after last week’s embarassing defeat. That gets under way at 8.05pm.

Spurs will have to try overcome Italian giants Fiorentina without star striker Harry Kane, who has been ruled out with a broken nose. That tie (also 8.05pm) is nicely poised following a 1-1 draw in Florence.

As usual, you can get in touch with us via Twitter, Facebook or the comments section below.

Tonight’s match is live on Setanta Ireland and BT Sport Europe.

A couple of names stand out on the Augsburg side; you’ll need to zoom in on the below image for now.

Former Arsenal goalkeeper Alex Manninger is on the bench for the German club while Turkey international Halil Altintop, the twin brother of former Real Madrid man Hamit Altintop, lines out in central midfield.

It’s a big cup week for Liverpool, can they get it off to the perfect start tonight? You’d have to think so looking at that line-up.

It looks like Lucas will start at centre-half instead of Toure tonight. Only five minutes until kick-off.

Anfield in good voice as always; You’ll Never Walk Alone is bellowing around the ground.

Lot of people must have left work early today…

EARLY CHANCE for Augsburg. Lucas already out of position in his unfamiliar centre-half spot.

An opportunity for Caiubi but he fires well over from the edge of the area. An early warning sign for the Reds.

And ……….. we’re under way at Anfield.

PENALTY TO LIVERPOOL.

Paul Verhaegh, the Augsburg captain is pinged for a handball.

Liverpool 1 Augsburg 0 (Milner, pen 5)

Great finish by Milner, he buries it down the goalkeeper’s left. The keeper went the right way but the strike was too good.

The penalty looked a fair call. Calamity of errors from the Germans as they defended a Liverpool corner.

Caiuby leapt for the cross but in doing so he pushed his captain off-balance in the air. Verhaegh’s hand rose in reaction and met the ball mid-flight.

Handy one for Liverpool, although they’ll obviously need a second one. Away goals are an awful divil.

Liverpool have been loose in possession at times but have looked dangerous every time they get forward.

A perfect start but you’d like to see them really put this one away early, especially with the week that’s in it.

Sturridge has looked in fine touch every time he gets on it. Can’t say the same for Firmino so far…

Sturridge again impressing. He takes on the Augsburg defence and his dancing feet have the Germans bemused. He eventually slides in a through ball for Coutinho but the Brazilian prods it at the the goalkeeper, and Hitz makes a decent stop.

Augsburg look all at sea every time Liverpool get it out wide. Clyne having plenty of joy down the right too, and he fires just wide from their latest attack. That was deflected. The corner comes to nothing though.

Sturridge has been sensational to date. He’s running the show; switching wings and coming deep.

Liverpool go close but it would have been ruled out for offside anyway. It’s been a much better spell from Klopp’s charges.

GOOD STOP from Mignolet, from distance. That’s the first time he’s been called into action tonight.

Hitz matches him at the other end though as he saves well from Firmino. Decent game this.

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But one goal and they go through….Liverpool HAVE TO make this dominance count.

Coutinho is starting to come into this a bit more. Augsburg look happy to stand off Coutinho and Sturridge when they pick it up out wide, that won’t last long surely.

The Brazilian cuts insider, beating a couple of defenders, before firing low at Hitz, who deals with it comfortably.

Augsburg offering very little so far.

LUCAS WITH A HOWLER, what was he thinking??

A woeful back pass never got close to Mignolet. Caiuby picked it up and rounded a flat-footed Mignolet only to fire into the side-netting from a tight angle.

That’s concerning from a Liverpool point of view. If there was ever a reminder that they need to extend this lead…

POST. Great interchange from Can and Coutinho. The Brazilian then pulls it back for Sturridge whose left-footed, first-time strike pings off the post.

Liverpool skipper Jordan Henderson is down receiving attention after taking a nasty-looking kick to the leg. He’s limping but looks like he’ll be fit to continue.

One minute of added time to play.

Sakho has impressed tonight, he’s had to be good too with Lucas jumping out of position so often.

HT: Liverpool 1 Augsburg 0

Halfway there but Liverpool look vulnerable at the back, even against a limp Augsburg attack that has managed just 24 goals in 22 Bundesliga games this season.

Klopp won’t be hauling anyone off for a rest ahead of the League Cup final just yet.

One of the better parody accounts out there …

Spurs and Man United get their second-leg fixtures under way in an hour.

Ben Blake will be on liveblog duty for United v FC Midtjylland.

Tottenham might be worth watching going by this stat.

Both games are on Setanta (Ireland and Sports 1)

Liverpool get the second half under way.

At the other end, Liverpool look lost at set-pieces. Augsburg go close from a long-range free-kick that is headed back across goal only for the ball to be nodded over.

It would have been ruled out for offside anyway but it’s another warning sign.

JUST WIDE — Really, really sloppy stuff from Augsburg. Sturridge is played in with just a defender and goalkeeper to beat. He rounds the defender with ease but send his shot agonisingly wide of the goalkeeper’s left-hand post.

Both sides have been guilty of some really sloppy defending tonight.

Augsburg are starting to defend a bit better. They’ve started pressing the ball out wide a bit more; leaving Coutinho and Sturridge less time on the ball.

Doesn’t take a coaching expert to understand that’s a good move.

James Milner is down holding his face after catching an accidental elbow. He’s shaken but not too stirred — he’ll be fine to continue.

The way Liverpool have defended set-pieces so far you would not feel confident that they will see this out without conceding.

And they keep conceding them…

But the Augsburg delivery lets them down for the second time in succession.

Sturridge is being withdrawn, Origi is coming on for Liverpool.

Excellent showing from Sturridge. Benteke may as well get his transfer papers in order at this stage – snubbed again.

GREAT STUFF from Mignolet, there’s a sentence that hasn’t been uttered too many times this season.

Werner is played through on goal but the Belgian stopper reads it well and clears the danger just in time.

Liverpool are playing with fire at the moment.

GREAT STOP from Hitz after Coutinho’s cross is deflected towards the corner.

This game has lacked any kind of pattern or structure, it’s hard to know what way this will go.

That will be Werner’s last piece of action. The dangerous Bobadilla is on for him.

ANOTHER GOOD STOP by Hitz, although Henderson really should have done better.

The ball fell to the Liverpool captain after Firmino lost control of it in the box following a great ball up the right flank from Milner.

Henderson should have put his foot through it, he ended up placing a tame effort down the throat of Hitz though, who has been excellent tonight.

Less than 10 mins to go, let the fingernail chewing commence.

It’s been a much better second half display from the German side to be fair. They’ve pressured the ball better and looked much more organised.

Although their goalkeeper has been their best player, which always says a lot.

Coutinho is being withdrawn now, he’ll be put on ice until Sunday.

Joao Carlos is on in his place, great show of faith from Klopp to introduce the Portuguese at this crucial stage.

Augsburg with their best spell of possession, they carve Liverpool open but Caiuby’s pullback doesn’t find its intended target. Breathe Liverpool fans, this may hurt a little.

A free-kick for Augsburg 25 yards out after a Lucas foul on Caiuby. Stay tuned….

Great feet from Origi; he does really well to create a bit of space but his daisy-cutter doesn’t cause Hitz any problems.

Liverpool are on the front foot at least, they just need to stay focused now and see this out.

A whisker wide, I thought that was in…my stars.

Just another few minutes to hang on.

Into injury time, and there’ll be FIVE minutes of it.

Could be a long five minutes for the Reds.

Two minutes to go, Liverpool in command.

FT: Liverpool 1 Augsburg 0

They held on, it wasn’t convincing but they got there in the end.

Now they can turn their attention to a League Cup final against Manchester City on Sunday with their European campaign still alive.

Nothing too special from Liverpool tonight, they looked very shaky at the back at times but job done, thanks to an early penalty from Milner.

That’s all from me tonight, Ben Blake will be taking you through Manchester United v FC Midtjylland which gets under way in five minutes.

Liverpool report and reaction to follow shortly.

Manchester United without 13 players for tonight’s crucial Europa League game

‘Carragher is a s**t, a f**king loser & Gerrard killed Liverpool by slipping against Chelsea’

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