Date: 18th May 2016 at 11:29am
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Liverpool go into the Europa League final on Wednesday knowing that a win would see them secure a place in Reds’ history and become the most successful English club in European cup competitions.

Having won the European Cup/Champions League five times, Jurgen Klopp’s side are looking to win their fourth UEFA Cup/Europa League crown against Sevilla.

The Spanish side, managed by Unai Emery, will be no pushover though having won the Europa League in each of the last two seasons, and they are looking to become the first team to win the trophy for a third time in a row.

However, Klopp will be looking to improve on his recent record in cup finals. Since winning the Bundesliga/German Cup double with Borussia Dortmund in 2012, the German has lost his last four finals, including a Champions League final and the League Cup final against Manchester City earlier this season.

The ex-Mainz boss will be confident that his side can stop Sevilla winning their third consecutive Europa League title due to the impressive sides the Reds have beaten on the way to the final in Basle though. Having narrowly seen off German side Augsburg thanks to a James Milner penalty, the Merseyside club saw off rivals Manchester United, Klopp’s former employers Borussia Dortmund, in miraculous fashion, and Villarreal.

Sevilla, meanwhile, defeated Molde, Basel, Spanish rivals Athletic Bilbao on penalties, and Shakhtar Donetsk to make it to the final in Switzerland.

Team News:

Klopp will be pleased to have captain Jordan Henderson available at St Jakob-Park. The midfielder, who was called up to Roy Hodgson’s initial 26-man England squad for Euro 2016, could make his first start since April after recovering from a knee injury. The 25-year-old came off the bench in Liverpool’s 1-1 draw at West Bromwich Albion on the final day of the Premier League season on Sunday.

Divock Origi, the Belgium international striker, could also feature after returning to training. Origi has been missing since a tackle from Ramiro Funes Mori in the Merseyside derby forced the ex-Lille man off with an ankle injury.

However, central defender Mamadou Sakho is still unavailable after failing a drugs test following the Europa League last-16 win over Manchester United.

Sevilla have no new injury worries, with only Denmark international Michael Krohn-Delhi sidelined. The midfielder damaged knee ligaments in the semi-finals of the competition, but Yevhen Konoplyanka may only be fit enough to start from the substitutes’ bench.

League Position: Liverpool – 8th (Premier League – 60 pts); Sevilla – 7th (La Liga – 52 pts)
Previous Meeting: This will be the first competitive fixture between Liverpool and Sevilla
Form: Liverpool – LLWWDD; Sevilla – WDLWLL
Key Men: Liverpool – Philippe Coutinho; Sevilla – Kevin Gameiro
Shoot Says: Liverpool 2-1 Sevilla

 
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