Wednesday night's Champions League semi-final between Barcelona and Bayern Munich will reunite four former Liverpool stars at the Nou Camp.
The
Reds may have crashed out of this season's competition at the group
stage but Kop favourites Luis Suarez, Javier Mascherano, Xabi Alonso and
Pepe Reina are just two games away from next month's final in Berlin.
LUIS SUAREZ (BARCELONA)
The
Uruguayan only left Liverpool last summer but he has established
himself as a third of Europe's most prolific front three alongside
Lionel Messi and Neymar.
After
serving the remainder of a four-month ban for biting and overcoming a
barren spell in front of goal early on, Suarez has now found the back of
the net 16 times in La Liga and six times in the Champions League.
And,
with 14 assists in both competitions, he has been a first-class
provider of goals for his two South American strike partners.
The
28-year-old became one of the world's most expensive players when he
made a £75million move to Spain but he has wasted no time in proving his
worth.
JAVIER MASCHERANO (BARCELONA)
Mascherano
spent almost three-and-a-half seasons in the heart of Liverpool's
midfield before making a £17.25m move to the Nou Camp in the summer of
2010.
He
has flourished since moving to the continent, helping the Catalan
giants to two La Liga titles, the Champions League and the Copa del
Rey.
Used
in central defence as well as defensive midfield, the Argentina
international is yet to score in almost 200 appearances in all
competitions.
Mascherano is likely to anchor Luis Enrique's midfield on Wednesday night, allowing Ivan Rakitic and Andres Iniesta to attack.
XABI ALONSO (BAYERN MUNICH)
Popular
among fans of a red persuasion to this day, Alonso is in his first
season at Bayern Munich after leaving Real Madrid in a £5m deal last
summer.
During
his five years at the Bernabeu, the Spaniard helped Los Blancos to one
La Liga title, two Copa del Reys and last season's Champions League.
He
made a surprise move to the Bundesliga in August last year and has
fitted seamlessly into Pep Guardiola's side, helping them to their 25th
German title last month.
Alonso,
who retired from international duty last summer, has also won the World
Cup and European Championship with Spain since leaving Merseyside.
PEPE REINA (BAYERN MUNICH)
A
stalwart in Liverpool's goal for eight years, Reina fell out of favour
under Brendan Rodgers and was loaned to Napoli in the summer of 2013
after the club signed Simon Mignolet from Sunderland.
He
was reunited with former Reds boss Rafa Benitez in Serie A but failed
to sign a permanent deal with the club despite playing regularly during
the 2013-14 campaign.
Reina returned to Liverpool but was quickly sold to Bayern in a £2m deal, becoming an understudy to No 1 Manuel Neuer.
He has since made just two appearances in the Bundesliga and will start on the bench for Wednesday's Champions League clash.
