Liverpool Thriving on Pressure of Quadruple Chase, Says Alexander-Arnold

02 May 2022, United Kingdom, Liverpool: Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold (R) and goalkeeper Alisson take part in a training session at the AXA Training Centre ahead of Tuesday's UEFA Champions League semifinal second leg match against Villarreal. (dpa)
02 May 2022, United Kingdom, Liverpool: Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold (R) and goalkeeper Alisson take part in a training session at the AXA Training Centre ahead of Tuesday's UEFA Champions League semifinal second leg match against Villarreal. (dpa)
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Liverpool Thriving on Pressure of Quadruple Chase, Says Alexander-Arnold

02 May 2022, United Kingdom, Liverpool: Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold (R) and goalkeeper Alisson take part in a training session at the AXA Training Centre ahead of Tuesday's UEFA Champions League semifinal second leg match against Villarreal. (dpa)
02 May 2022, United Kingdom, Liverpool: Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold (R) and goalkeeper Alisson take part in a training session at the AXA Training Centre ahead of Tuesday's UEFA Champions League semifinal second leg match against Villarreal. (dpa)

Liverpool are thriving on the pressure of playing for an unprecedented quadruple and every game feels like a final now, defender Trent Alexander-Arnold said ahead of Tuesday's Champions League semi-final second leg at Villarreal.

Liverpool hold a 2-0 lead from the first leg as they target a third final in five years in Europe's elite club competition.

The English League Cup winners are also a point behind Premier League leaders Manchester City and have reached the FA Cup final, where they take on Chelsea this month.

"To be honest, I feel like we thrive off it (the pressure)," Alexander-Arnold told reporters. "I've said it before, I feel this is always the best time in the season for us lads. Every game is a final, we're pushing on all three fronts now.

"These are the exciting games, you want to be playing in these, you want everything on the line and you want every game to feel like you have to win it ... the lads feel the same way.

"It's exciting, the buzz you get from scoring in the game and you know it's vitally important."

The 23-year-old right back had said earlier this season that Liverpool must aim for a minimum of one trophy per year but he has revised that target.

"I did say one trophy a season minimum and that's probably in a season that's not one of our best. But we're in fine form, we've played outstanding all season, we've been able to win in different ways," Alexander-Arnold said.

"Come the end of May, hopefully we'll be in the history books again."



‘Flooding Rains’ Threaten to Dampen Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony

Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)
Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)
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‘Flooding Rains’ Threaten to Dampen Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony

Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)
Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)

The Paris Olympics look likely to get off to a soggy start.

Meteo-France, the French weather service, is predicting “flooding rains” Friday evening when the opening ceremony is set to unroll along the Seine River. But the show is set to go on as planned, starting at 1:30 p.m. EDT/7:30 p.m. CEST and should last more than three hours.

Already in the late afternoon, skies were gray with intermittent drizzle. There was a silver lining, though, with temperatures expected to stay relatively warm throughout the evening.

Instead of a traditional march into a stadium, about 6,800 athletes will parade on more than 90 boats on the Seine River for 6 kilometers (3.7 miles). Though 10,700 athletes are expected to compete at these Olympics, hundreds of soccer players are based outside Paris, surfers are in Tahiti and many have yet to arrive for their events in the second week, organizers said Thursday.

Hundreds of thousands of people, including 320,000 paying and invited ticket-holders, are expected to line the Seine’s banks as athletes are paraded along the river on boats.