Europa League results, panic meter: Liverpool destroyed by Atalanta, AC Milan struggles vs. AS Roma

The first leg of the UEFA Europa League quarter-finals was far from smooth for the favorites. Liverpool and AC Milan started the match with a defeat and Bayer Leverkusen needed two goals in the last ten minutes to take the lead.

It leaves the tournament’s most high-profile sides in different situations heading into next week’s second leg, some far more ideal than others. Arguably the most surprising result of Thursday’s action was Atalanta’s 3-0 win over Liverpool at Anfield, leaving the Reds perhaps in the most difficult position for the second leg.

That could mean it’s time to sound the alarm at Liverpool and perhaps Milan, who lost 1-0 to Roma, while congratulating others on a job well done in the first leg. After an exciting day of action in the Europa League, let’s break the panic meter.

Europa League results

• Liverpool 0, Atalanta 3
• Bayer Leverkusen 2, West Ham 0
• AC Milan 0, Roma 1
• Benfica 2, Marseille 1

No reason to panic: Bayer Leverkusen

The Bundesliga leaders may only have scored in the final ten minutes of the match, but the special thing about Leverkusen this season is that they always somehow get the job done. It’s not that they didn’t have the performance to back up the score: they had 72.5% of the ball, 33 shots, 13 on target and 2.36 expected goals when all was said and done, restricting West Ham to just one shot. Even if West Ham have the advantage of playing at home in the second leg, Leverkusen will be difficult to beat, both in terms of playing style and two-goal lead.

Minimal panic: Roma

Roma’s hot streak under new manager Daniele De Rossi continued, this time with a 1-0 win over Milan. The result complements a strong performance for Roma, who absorbed Milan’s pressure well and did more with their limited attacking moments than the opposition: Milan posted 25 shots and put only five on target, while Roma scored a goal from one of their ten shots. three of which hit the target. Home advantage may help in the second leg, but the margin of victory is tight and Milan have plenty of firepower, so this tie is not over yet.

Somewhere in the middle: AC Milan

The attacking Milan got a number of things right on Thursday, such as their high shot count. However, they were terribly wasteful, scoring just 1.55 expected goals despite all their efforts. Milan have enough talent to turn things around, especially with goalscorers Christian Pulisic, Rafael Leao and Olivier Giroud in the squad. However, they were outplayed to some extent by a revived Roma, so they will have to actually perform to overcome the one-goal deficit.

Five-alarm fire panic: Liverpool

It has been a bad week for Liverpool, who could have taken themselves out of the Premier League title race and the Europa League in a matter of days. The Reds lost 3-0 on Thursday despite dominating possession and shooting, this time coupled with ineffectiveness up top and sloppiness in defense. It’s not that Liverpool aren’t good enough to overcome such a deficit in a week’s time. The fact that the squad includes Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz means they will always be in it. However, Jurgen Klopp’s side have been somewhat wasteful all season, something they have often survived, but they came to bite against Manchester United on Sunday and Atalanta on Thursday. As a result, a three-goal deficit will be difficult to overcome and will likely require perfection to achieve.