BASEL, Switzerland (AP) – There’s more at stake than just a trophy for Liverpool and Sevilla in the Europa League final on Wednesday.
A guaranteed place in the group stage of next season’s Champions League is the bigger reward for the teams which placed eighth in the English Premier League and seventh in the Spanish league.
For Liverpool, the prestige of rejoining the elite will help manager Juergen Klopp’s plans to recruit and build a team this offseason for his first full campaign at the storied club.
“I am pretty sure that if we don’t win the title nobody will think it (the season) is a success,” Klopp said at a news conference on Tuesday. “We already know about … the desire of our supporters. We know how much they want to win this cup.”
Liverpool midfielder James Milner said the team’s focus was “all about winning trophies” rather than qualifying for a different event.