Paris Saint-Germain star Vitinha insisted his side remain wary of the threat posed by Champions League quarter-final opponents Liverpool despite the Anfield club coming into the heavyweight tie on the back of a 0-4 thrashing at the hands of Manchester City in the FA Cup quarter-final.
“Liverpool are Liverpool, even if they are not in ideal form. They are still a great team,” Vitinha told reporters on Tuesday, the eve of the first leg between the sides at the Parc des Princes. “It will be a great match here, and tomorrow we will need to be at 100 percent. It will be a very difficult game,” he added.
The tie is a repeat of the Champions League last-16 encounter between the clubs a year ago, when Liverpool won 1-0 in Paris only for Luis Enrique’s side to claim victory by the same score at Anfield and then go through on penalties. They went on to become European champions for the first time in their history, while Liverpool won the Premier League. However, Arne Slot’s side have struggled to rediscover their best form this season, and come into Wednesday’s showdown having won just one of their last five matches in all competitions.
About last year’s meeting between the two sides, Vitinha said: “It was an incredible tie. There was a bit of frustration in the first match. I don’t remember Liverpool having a chance apart from the goal they scored. We played well and yet we lost. I remember saying that by playing like that we could go to Liverpool and win. Fortunately we did that, but that was last year. This is a different year, and a different game,” the Portuguese star added.
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