At St. James' Park, Newcastle United's mission was to stay in the Premier League.
Newcastle's players had already heard some news. Their future might be brighter than their current predicament, because Newcastle United had a real chance of restoring their former glory in the years ahead.
Because of that, Newcastle United had to do everything they could to remain in the Premier League. They absolutely could not be relegated to the Championship.
"Welcome, everyone, to Matchday 29 of the Premier League, Liverpool against Newcastle!"
"Newcastle are holding nothing back in this match. Striker Rondón, midfielders Pérez, Hayden, Atsu, and the others are all starting!"
"Liverpool haven't held anything back either. Every star you can think of is out there on the pitch!"
"We can feel the frustration coming off Firmino. Over the past few days, because of his terrible performance in the Celebrity Golf Tournament, Firmino has been absolutely roasted by both fans and teammates."
"That is not good news for Newcastle, because however bad Firmino is at golf, he is just as good at football!"
After Gullit finished that opening line, Scholes and Ashley Cole, who had returned to the commentary booth after recovering from his cold, could not help bursting into laughter.
"Gullit, you didn't let Firmino off either."
"Newcastle should be aiming to take one point from this match. For a team fighting relegation, getting any points at all counts as success."
"The relegation battle in the Premier League this season is actually very intense. Several teams still have a chance of staying up, but they could also drop into the Championship."
"No matter what, staying in the Premier League is the most important thing, because the value of the Premier League and the Championship is completely different. Clubs can only earn more revenue in the Premier League."
"And once you drop into the Championship, there's no guarantee you can immediately get promoted back."
"You might even sink deeper and deeper in the Championship. We've seen Premier League sides drop down, fail to recover, and eventually fall all the way into League One."
However, no one could underestimate the energy of a relegation side in the latter stages of a season.
Once the match began, Newcastle actually played quite well. Just like Watford before them, they had a clear tactical plan.
The players were organized on the pitch, but in Leo Lin's eyes, that structure was far too rigid.
When mid-table and lower-table clubs played matches, their managers often did not allow the players to improvise too much because their individual ability was limited. That was different from the coaching philosophy at some of the elite clubs.
But in many cases, that was the only kind of tactic that could help a team keep picking up points.
After the match began, Leo Lin first dropped deep into the penalty area and held the ball for long spells at the back. The aim was to completely extinguish Newcastle's hopes of sprinting forward to press.
Sure enough, as Liverpool spent more and more time keeping possession in their own half, Newcastle not only refused to press, they actually seemed happy to let Liverpool keep the ball like that.
Because if Liverpool played this way, they would not threaten Newcastle's goal. In that case, why provoke them?
Let this beast play by itself. Ideally, it would show them mercy, and both sides could walk away with a point. Everyone would be happy.
That was exactly what Newcastle's manager was thinking. Before the match, he had still held a sliver of hope. Liverpool still had to prepare for the Champions League semifinal, and with such a big lead in the table, perhaps they would not spend too much energy on this match and would end it in a relatively calm manner.
Judging from the tempo after kickoff, Newcastle's manager even felt his guess might be right. Liverpool fans, however, did not think so.
"If I saw Liverpool playing like this a season ago, I'd be furious. But one season later, I know this is Liverpool waiting for their chance."
"If you think Liverpool are going to finish the match like this, you're far too naive. Their target is always three points!"
Newcastle's players were also waiting anxiously. They had no idea when Liverpool would launch their attack.
But for the entire first half, aside from one shot by Firmino, there was not a second attempt. The two sides went into halftime level at 0-0 at St. James' Park.
As the match reached halftime, Gullit was not entirely sure whether Liverpool were planning to abandon this league match for the sake of the Champions League semifinal.
"Is it possible Liverpool might give up on this league match for the Champions League semifinal?"
"In the second half, Klopp could very well take his starters off one by one and leave with a point. That would still keep them nine points ahead in the table, and with one game in hand."
Gullit thought Klopp might very well do that. After all, if he had to choose between the Premier League and the Champions League, he would choose the Champions League without hesitation. He also believed most teams would make the same choice.
"I don't think so. Klopp has never been the type to take excessive risks."
"If they give up these two points, it could affect Liverpool's league form."
"Nothing is absolute. What if Newcastle hold them to a draw, then Liverpool can't find their scoring rhythm in the next match, and after that, they're held to more draws or even start losing?"
"After a few matches, you'd be giving Guardiola the chance to overtake you. And there's Chelsea as well. They look far from Liverpool, but also not that far. A few league matches can change everything."
Newcastle's manager was also thrown into a kind of anxious uncertainty. It was a painful feeling, because he both hoped Liverpool would keep playing at this tempo in the second half and worried that Liverpool would finish them off after the break.
Would Klopp really choose to selectively abandon this match?
The answer, of course, was no.
The reason Liverpool had played like that in the first half was because Klopp was giving Newcastle an opportunity. He knew professional coaches thought about far more than ordinary fans did.
Newcastle's manager would definitely wonder whether Liverpool were going to change their approach in the second half, but he could not predict it, because the initiative was in Liverpool's hands.
If he wanted to change that situation, the only way was to take the initiative back. That meant Newcastle's manager, driven by that unease, was very likely to actively change his own tactics in the second half.
A Newcastle side defending with everything they had would be hard to break down. But if they dared to change formation midway, Liverpool would absolutely seize the moment and crush them.
Back in the dressing room, Klopp had been waiting for news. But even as the second half was about to begin, the news he had been waiting for still had not arrived.
Just as he was about to return to the pitch, Zubizarreta rushed in. He had the news.
"They've made a change!"
"They're bringing on Murphy and taking off Schär!"
"Newcastle have taken off a center back and brought on a winger!"
"Boss!"
"Our chance is here!"
...
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