Jurgen Klopp was forced to call on Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino as Liverpool laboured against Monterrey, with the latter winning the game.
2019 Club World Cup
1-2
Match Report
Roberto Firmino came off the bench and scored a 91st-minute goal to earn Liverpool a 2-1 win over Monterrey and a spot in the Club World Cup final.
Jurgen Klopp opted to name Firmino and Sadio Mane among the substitutes, while Jordan Henderson started at centre-back with Virgil van Dijk - one of the Reds' two first-team centre-backs in the squad - absent due to illness.
Liverpool looked like they would be able to cope without two of their electric front three when Naby Keita put them ahead in the 11th minute, but Rogelio Funes Mori – the twin brother of former Everton defender Ramiro – hit back three minutes later.
Klopp was forced to send on Mane and Firmino in a bid to avoid extra time and the Brazilian turned home fellow substitute Trent Alexander-Arnold's low cross six minutes after coming on to book a meeting with Flamengo on Saturday.
Match Events
11' GOAL! Monterrey 0-1 Liverpool (Keita)
The defender loses track of Keita as he runs around the back of him to get on the end of Salah's pass and fires his shot past Barovero from the middle of the box.
14' GOAL! Monterrey 1-1 Liverpool (Mori)
Liverpool are caught out from a set-piece as they don't clear their lines. It falls to Gallardo first and it's well-saved by Alisson, but the ball rebounds to Funes Mori and he takes a touch before finding the bottom corner.
37' Excellent save from Alisson!
50' SAVE! Fine stop from Alisson
62' OFFSIDE! Origi scores but goal is disallowed
74' WHAT A CHANCE missed by Origi!
91' GOAL! Monterrey 1-2 Liverpool (Firmino)
It's a wonderful cross from Alexander-Arnold and Firmino gets ahead of Sanchez in the six-yard box to get on the end of it. He sidefoots his effort on target and Barovero can't get his hand to it in time to stop it finding the back of the net.
Line-ups
Monterrey XI: L. Vangioni, M. Barovero, N. Sánchez, D. Pabón, C. Ortiz, S. Medina, R. Funes Mori, R. Pizarro, J. Gallardo, C. Montes, C. Rodríguez
Subs: J. Basanta, J. Urretaviscaya, M. Layún, A. González, M. Meza, E. Gutiérrez, E. Reséndez, Á. Zaldívar, L. Cárdenas, J. Gónzalez, J. Vásquez, W. Mejía
Liverpool XI: Milner, Lallana, Henderson, Shaqiri, Alisson, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Salah, Origi, Robertson, Joe Gomez, Naby Keita
Subs: Lonergan, Adrian, Firmino, Mane, Alexander-Arnold, Curtis Jones, N. Williams