Manchester City and Liverpool will face Real Madrid and Villarreal respectively in the Champions League. A win for Man City and Liverpool would bring their home rivalry to the largest stage of all.
If City and Liverpool meet in Paris on May 28, it will be the third all-English final in four years.
With five games remaining in the Premier League title battle, Jurgen Klopp’s side is a point behind City.
However, they defeated City to reach the FA Cup final next month and won the League Cup in February after a penalty shoot out against Chelsea.
Klopp has already lost against Villarreal manager Unai Emery in a European final, when his Sevilla side defeated Liverpool in the 2016 Europa League final.
“It’s the third time we play the semi-final of the Champions League against a team who have a few Champions Leagues in the trophy cabinet. It has to be a special night for us to enjoy it, give everything we have in our soul and after we’ll see what happens,” said Guardiola.
Madrid came back from a 2-0 deficit to overcome PSG in the last 16 and then fought back from a 3-0 deficit against Chelsea at the Santiago Bernabeu to reach the semi-finals in spectacular fashion.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side will have home advantage in the second leg next week, but there are worries over whether the old legs of Karim Benzema and Luka Modric can continue to carry Los Blancos.
Liverpool and City have consistently rewritten the record books throughout the era of Klopp and Guardiola in England’s north-west.
They have ten days to prove they are the two strongest teams in Europe by putting an end to La Liga’s claim to English dominance of the Champions League.
