The group stage of the Champions League is over, and whatever their problems in the Premier League, Liverpool grabbed a playoff round bye without any trouble.
Of course, last season, the Reds finished first overall in the group stage, and their prize was a Round of 16 matchup with eventual winners Paris St.-Germain, a reminder that nothing is for certain right now.
While the playoff teams scrap for their European seasons, Liverpool can cool their heels at home and we can take a look at their potential matchups.
Bodø/Glimt
No doubt this is the matchup that Liverpool fans would want, unless they recall that the Norwegian side beat Manchester City less than two weeks ago.
Even if there was an element of luck behind Jens Petter Hauge’s strike for their third goal, that win was no fluke.
The Super Team may lack sexy names, but their defense and midfield contain numerous players from the Norway team that qualified for the World Cup ahead of Italy, and Danish striker Kasper Høgh finished his chances neatly against City.
Should they face Liverpool, it will mean they’ve beaten Inter and will be riding high. Taking this side lightly would be a recipe for disaster.
Galatasaray
The defending champions of the Turkish Süper Lig won’t be overawed by the occasion, with experienced hands like Mauro Icardi, Leroy Sané, and İlkay Gündoǧan on the squad.
That’s not even accounting for goal-scorer extraordinaire Victor Osimhen, who left Napoli after his own team posted a racist meme about him.
Why has nobody in one of the “Big Four” leagues snapped him up? Already this is enough offensive talent to hurt Liverpool or anybody else, and homegrown attackers like Bariș Yılmaz and Yunus Akgün give them strength in depth. The rabid fans in Istanbul will make sure that traveling to Türkiye won’t be fun.
Inter Milan
They are leading Serie A by five points as of this writing, which should tell you everything you need to know.
New coach Cristian Chivu is ironing out the issues that relegated the Nerazzurri to second best under Simone Inzaghi last season.
Goalkeeper Yann Sommer and the defense in front of him remain capable of snuffing out an elite offense.
The midfield can match up with Liverpool’s, and striker Lautaro Martínez is potent. Of all the possible matchups in the round of 16, this is the one that Liverpool should fear most.
Juventus
His discouraging tenure as coach of Italy notwithstanding, new coach Luciano Spalletti is capable of outsmarting anyone.
He has converted Weston McKennie into an attacking forward and has also unlocked Jonathan David, who was looking like a big old bust since joining the Old Lady at the beginning of the Serie A season.
Both of the North Americans have rewarded him by finding the net multiple times this month.
There may still be zero atmosphere at the Stadio delle Alpi, but the Bianconeri are no longer living off their reputation. They are dangerous again.