AS Roma 4-2 Liverpool (6-7 aggregate): 5 Talking Points

Liverpool have earned the ticket to Kiev and they did it in the most typical Liverpool fashion. The invited the Romans to the transit gates, shut it and waved them away. In a game that oscillated from one side to the other like somebody hot under the collar was swinging it, Liverpool's measured spells of hard work in the first half proved to be the difference.

Roma, needing an early goal to set things in course, conceded as early as the 9th minute as Sadio Mane coolly slotted the ball home after being played in by Firmino. Unfortunately for Liverpool, a clearance deflected off James Milner and ended up in the back of the net and restored parity.

Liverpool got their lead back once again and this time it was Wijnaldum doing the honours. Dzeko equalized for the Romans early in the second half. However, as Liverpool gained more control in midfield, Roma seemed to have given up. A late resurgence saw them pull 2 more back. But time had run out and Eusebio Di Francesco's men could not add yet another chapter to this fairytale.

In Kiev, it will be Real Madrid up against Liverpool. But before we get to that, let's take a look at the 5 talking points from the game.

#5 Roma get their setup right but still struggle against Liverpool's pace

Roma took to the field in a 4-3-3 formation and that proved to be a wise decision from Di Francesco. Mohamed Salah was not afforded the kindof space he was in the first leg thanks to the defenders sitting deep to thwart the danger.

Salah tried to run off the shoulder of the last defender far too many times but was caught offside on far too many occasions. He couldn't get down to his usual trickery down the wings as the Roma defenders tried to make sure they weren't forced into a situation where they'd have to deal with the pace of Mane or Salah.

However, a poor give away from Radja Naingollan did indeed expose the Roma backline and it gave Liverpool the chance to hit Roma with pace and that's exactly what they did. The result was Sadio Mane's goal in the 9th minute.

#4 Liverpool miss Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's drives from midfield

Too often it looked like Liverpool's midfielders were happy to let their opposition take charge in midfield. With Di Rossi passing the ball around the park with surgical precision and Naingollan toying with the rest, Roma kept trying and testing things in midfield.

What Liverpool seemed to lack is the pace and directness of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. The former Gunner has got quick feet, has great pace and can also test the keeper from range. He also steps up during the big games and had been quite impressive in Liverpool's wins over City this season.

Liverpool will miss the Ox at Kiev too. Wijnaldum will need to up the ante and be the force that helps add the numbers in the opposition box. If he doesn't storm back and forth against a midfield of Kroos, Modric and Casemiro, Liverpool will struggle to connect the midfield and the frontline

#3 Roma should have shown more urgency in the last quarter of the game

Dzeko scores Roma's second goal of the night

When the game remained deadlocked after 70 odd minutes had passed, it looked like Roma were sapped off the enthusiasm that was buoying them on to the European dream. Their players looked desolate and nobody seemed to be able to rally them forward.

It was during this period that Roma let go of a couple of chances that should have ended up in the back of the net. Dzeko wasn't at his clinical best today and even Cengiz Under missed a chance that should have been converted.

If they had just pushed themselves forward after equalizing for the second time in the game, they could have got the 3rd goal earlier than the 86th minute and the game could have taken a whole different course.

Liverpool were a bit overwhelmed towards the end and nerves were starting to show. And when the 4th goal went in, you couldn't stop yourself from asking how different it could have been had they just up and went for it earlier.

#2 Liverpool defence escapes nightmare thanks to Roma's mistakes

Wasn't the best of nights for Liverpool's defenders

When they're put through the wringer, you'd find quite a few things suspect about the Liverpool defence. Trent Alexander-Arnold was beaten too easily for the 2nd goal. He was lucky to not have given away 2 penalties.

In the second half, Edin Dzeko thought he was clean through with just the keeper to beat. He poked the ball past Karius who came diving out and brought down Dzeko with him. However, Dzeko was flagged offside. Replays suggested that it could have gone either way.

If the assistant referee hadn't picked that up, that was a certain penalty and Roma would have clawed back into the game at a time that was more appropriate.

Roma have themselves to blame for not taking the half chances that came their way. Dzeko skied a header from close range and could not find the net as much as he would have liked as he was denied by Karius on more than one occasion.

Though he got 2 goals, Naingollan will not be a happy man tonight. It was his poor pass that led to the opening goal that immediately pegged Roma on the back foot. And in a team that can boast of the best front 3 in all of Europe, such mistakes will prove to be very costly.

#1 Champions League final will be just the way it should be; unpredictable

Can Klopp get his side to pull off the unthinkable at Kiev?

Liverpool have consistently taken the game to their opposition and have had no issues with finding the net this season. At the same time, Real Madrid often look a bit out of sorts when things don't pan out to plan.

Zinedine Zidane's men haven't been as convincing as Liverpool have been through this UEFA Champions League campaign and for this exact reason, the final at Kiev will be an absolutely unpredictable encounter.

There will be plenty of goals, that's sure. These are two teams that strongly believe that positive, high-stakes fast-paced attacking football that yields goals is the way to go about their business.

This will be the 4th Champions League final that Real Madrid will be featuring in in 5 years and their experience could be a defining factor. But with an unstoppable Liverpool being the underdogs here, there is no saying which way that one's going to go.