Daniel Sturridge, Joel Matip and why the Liverpool injury crisis will not end their Champions League dreams

When Liverpool face Bayern Munich on Tuesday night at Anfield, it will be the first Reds clash with the Bavarians in Merseyside since 1981.

In the three meetings of the two teams at Anfield, Liverpool has not only lost, she has not conceded a goal.

Jurgen Klopp will no doubt want the two records to continue in the 16th round of his team, the Champions League.

However, while Virgil van Dijk is suspended, Dejan Lovren and Joe Gomez are both injured and Roberto Firmino has a major doubt about his health, the Reds have to face a hard test against the giants of the Bundesliga.

We are preparing tonight's huge match against Bayern Munich HERE

In 1981, Liverpool had obviously overtaken Bayern in the semifinals of the European Cup before beating Real Madrid in the final in Paris. The glory of Bob Paisley's team suffered from the glory of the Reds who finished in fifth place.

Since then, the two teams have met only once: the 3-2 win of the European Super Cup in Liverpool in 2001.

But Klopp has already had the experience of leading the Reds against Bayern thanks to a friendly match in the Audi Cup at the Allianz Arena in August 2017.

Joel Matip will certainly be the starting lineup of Klopp that night, two and a half years ago, while the Reds were tied for 3-0.

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Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jordan Henderson, Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah and probably absentees Lovren and Firmino, while Mats Hummels, David Alaba, Thiago, James Rodriguez and Robert Lewandowski all started for the Bavarians.

Anfield are not expected to score again, but the Reds' scorers are likely to be a good omen for Liverpool fans as they enter the match.

The potential absence of Firmino is a blow but Daniel Sturridge is waiting to take his place alongside Salah and Mane in attack. The three players scored in this friendly match two and a half years ago.

By bringing the trio together, Klopp would also be in the same group as the one who aligned himself with the Reds' 3-2 victory over Paris Saint-Germain in September.

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Sturridge opened the scoring that day, while the English international had also scored three of his last four home starts.

His career in Liverpool may be about to end, but the striker is back on the scene as the Reds prepare for another famous European night at Anfield.