Leipzig's strikers brimming with confidence as Liverpool await

RB Leipzig's Nordi Mukiele, right, tries to get past Liverpool's Roberto Firmino, center, during the Champions League round of 16, first leg, soccer match between RB Leipzig and Liverpool in the Puskas Ferenc Arena in Budapest, Hungary, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021. At right Lukas Klostermann of RB Leipzig. (AP)

The confidence of RB Leipzig's strikers could be key in Wednesday's Champions League last 16 second leg against Liverpool as the Germans attempt to overturn a 2-0 first leg deficit, coach Julian Nagelsmann said on Tuesday.

Strikers Yussuf Poulsen and Alexander Sorloth have been in superb form in recent weeks along with Christopher Nkunku, and Leipzig have won seven of their last eight Bundesliga games.

Nagelsmann said they are brimming with confidence and that gave him hope his side can find a way to reach the quarter-finals.

"I am happy that our attack in the past months has had a big influence in our wins," Nagelsmann told a virtual news conference ahead of their trip to Budapest where the game will be played.

"We have to come back from 2-0 down. We have to take a few risks. We have to openly try to come back from the first leg defeat," he added. "It is good to have options with strikers who have confidence. The quality was the same some weeks ago but the confidence is different now.

"It will be no easy task but we must believe and we have filled up on confidence."

In contrast, Liverpool's horrendous run of form continued with a 1-0 defeat by relegation battlers Fulham on Sunday - their sixth successive home league loss. That result meant they slipped to eighth in the Premier League.

For Nagelsmann, however, Liverpool's league results matter little.

"Sure they were full of confidence in the past, more than now. It is a hard phase but they are still a world class team," he said. "They have a world class coach who has mastered crises in the past.

"We don't count those results too much. We are still 2-0 behind and we want to be the winners."