Liverpool fans confused by Fernandinho’s “long ball” comment

"They are a team who like to play long balls."

Fernandinho has confused Liverpool fans ahead of Tuesday's Champions League quarter-final second leg. Liverpool take a 3-0 lead into the match against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium, and Pep Guardiola's side will need to do something extremely special to advance to the semi-finals. Liverpool overwhelmed City at Anfield last week, scoring three times in a frantic first-half. Mohamed Salah, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Sadio Mane got the goals, and the Premier League's top team couldn't live with the intensity of Jurgen Klopp's side. Before the second-leg on Tuesday, Fernandinho and Guardiola spoke to the media, and the City midfielder managed to leave Liverpool supporters perplexed with his comments. The Brazilian told reporters that Klopp's team "like to play long balls." https://twitter.com/JamesPearceEcho/status/983301207203700736 https://twitter.com/neiljonesgoal/status/983301060071690240 https://twitter.com/_ChrisBascombe/status/983301052626817024 https://twitter.com/MarkOgden_/status/983301480290582529 Liverpool certainly aren't a long-ball team. All three of their first-choice forwards - Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah - are under 6ft and would, therefore, make terrible target-men. It's also rare to see any Liverpool player hit an aimless long ball and their own defence has often come undone by this tactic. When reading Fernandinho comments, it's worth keeping in mind that he's not speaking in his first language, and his concept of a "long-ball" might not be the same as ours. It's possible that the City midfielder meant that Liverpool are good at winning second balls, as they were often first to loose balls during the match last week - Oxlade-Chamberlain's goal came after James Milner won a tackle on the edge of City's penalty area. It's highly unlikely that Fernandinho actually believes Liverpool are a Tony Pulis-style long ball team. But, his comments sparked an inevitable reaction. https://twitter.com/TheKopHQ/status/983304834689454080 https://twitter.com/LeviHartley/status/983308637409071104 https://twitter.com/AnfieldEffect/status/983303043000172544 https://twitter.com/JSealeaf/status/983304567986294784 https://twitter.com/AndyTheRed83/status/983306935318597632