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Liverpool and AS Roma fans all over the world are eagerly awaiting the Champions League semi-finals between the two biggest surprise packages of the season.
The Reds beat their league rivals, Manchester City, whereas, AS Roma's comeback against the favourites, Barcelona was remarkable on its own.
AS Roma will be playing in the semi-finals of the CL after 34 years, whereas, Liverpool will take part in the semis for the first time since 2007-2008 season.
We are lining up for an interesting tie and the first leg will be played at Anfield on 25 March. Both the teams have many talented players at their helm and Liverpool's hero, Mohamed Salah will be playing against his former side for the first time since his move.
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Right on this note, let us look at the five players who will be the keys to deciding the first leg between Liverpool and AS Roma.
Stats- whoscored.com
#5 Roberto Firmino
Mohamed Salah is likely to get most of the attention from the opposing defenders and this may give Roberto Firmino a bit of freedom in the game which can massively affect the outcome.
The Brazillian is the pivotal figure of Jurgen Klopp's system at Liverpool and most of their games revolve around him.
He scored 15 goals in the PL this season and is Liverpool's joint-most goal scorer in the Champions League.
Firmino gets the best out of his teammates and the Reds usually play well whenever he is in his form.
He creates space for his teammates with his intelligent gameplay and that helps them to thrive in and link up with each other.
AS Roma's defenders are going to have a tough time at Anfield as Liverpool's sensational front three will go into the game in a good form.
#4 Edin Dzeko
One of the most underrated strikers in the world football, Edin Dzeko is a revelation since his move to the Serie A team and is also Roma's top goal scorer in the Champions League with six goals registered to his name.
The Bosnian international likes to bully the defenders and is strong in the air, which is Liverpool's weakness to some extent.
He scored 14 league goals already this season and was Serie A's top goalscorer (29) for the 2016-2017 season.
Bosnia's all-time leading goalscorer was also the top goal scorer in the Europa League last season and he will be looking forward to finishing his CL campaign with a strong tally of goals.
The former Manchester City striker will be locking horns against Virgil Van Dijk at Anfield, and the battle between the two will have a huge impact on the outcome of the game.
#3 Virgil van Dijk
Eyebrows were raised when Liverpool signed Van Dijk for £75 million - the highest transfer fee for a defender.
But he put the questions about his transfer fee to bed with his performances and the former Southampton man also remarkably improved Liverpool's leaky defence.
Liverpool likes to play counter-attacking football, which leaves behind gaps in their defensive third and teams tend to haunt the Reds by capitalising on them.
They shipped a lot of goals under such circumstances and lost many crucial points during the course of the season.
But the arrival of Van Dijk somewhat improved the situations for the Reds as he also keeps the team in shape with his strong leadership skills.
Liverpool have kept six clean sheets in the last 11 matches and the signs of improvement can clearly be seen.
AS Roma will try to score a crucial away goal during the first-leg at Anfield and Virgil van Dijk will be the biggest hurdle for the I Giallorossi (The Yellow and Reds) in their mission.
#2 Kostas Manolas
Kostas Manolas was AS Roma's hero against Barcelona when he scored Roma's third goal in the closing stages of the match to send his team to the CL semi-finals.
The Greek defender is enjoying a good season in Italy's capital and helped his team to maintain a strong defence in the Serie A. Manolas is a dominating figure in the air and won 2.7 headers per game in the Serie A.
The 26-year-old defender avoids reckless challenges and he reads the game to break down the attacking threats.
He possesses a great pace which will be vital in his job to stop his former teammate, Salah.
Liverpool's front-three is scoring goals with fun this season and the former AEK Athens' man will lead Roma's defence in their mission to stop Liverpool's sensational trio to run riot against them.
#1 Mohamed Salah
It is going to be a big game for the PFA Player of the Year 2018 winner, Mohamed Salah against his former club.
Salah joined Liverpool from AS Roma in the summer transfer window of 2017 and he is in a brilliant form since then.
He already scored 31 PL goals so far this season, which is a record tally for a 38-game Premier League season.
The Egyptian's form is impressive in the Champions League as well and he is the top goalscorer (eight goals) for Liverpool this campaign.
Salah scored the crucial goals for Liverpool in the quarter-finals and helped them reach the semi-finals of the Champions League for the first time since 2007-2008 season.
With Salah being in an unbelievable form this season, AS Roma's defenders need to be at the top of their game in order to stop the sensational Egyptian.
