Arne Slot delivers verdict on Liverpool drawing PSG in Champions League

Liverpool manager Arne Slot says he's looking forward to the challenge of facing in-form Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League round of 16 next month.

The Reds could have also been paired with Portuguese giants Benfica, but instead were drawn alongside the French champions at Friday's UEFA ceremony. PSG romped to a 10-0 aggregate victory over Brest across their two-legged play-off tie and are unbeaten across all competitions since November.

"At this stage of the competition," Slot told Liverpool's official website, "the quality of opponent is only going to be of a very high standard and in PSG we have drawn a team and a club with real European pedigree.

Slot's side have endured a stickier patch of form - Wednesday's draw with Aston Villa was Liverpool's third consecutive away match without a win. "As is the case with ourselves, PSG are top of their domestic league and are enjoying a long unbeaten run. This tells us all that we need to know about the challenge that we will face but it is also a challenge that we will look forward to, knowing that we also fully deserve to be in the last 16.

"Of course, our immediate focus is on our upcoming Premier League fixtures, starting with Manchester City on Sunday, but we will be doing everything we can to ensure that we are in the best possible shape when the Champions League resumes."

Despite their impressive run of results, PSG will no doubt be burdened by their historic failings in Europe's premier club competition. The French outfit have crashed out of the Champions League's last 16 in five of the last eight seasons.

PSG skipper Marquinhos warned: "We'll have to put in two great performances," but was positive about the current iteration of a side less dependent on star names. "We are starting games well right now, the team spirit is clearly there too," the Brazilian defender explained.

"That's our strength now, regardless of the competition. Even when there are changes in the team, there's the same attitude and the same intensity. That's our great strength. We showed during the play-offs that we're enjoying a good spell."

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