The second leg of the 2025/26 Champions League round-of-16 tie between Liverpool (England) and Galatasaray (Turkey) will take place on 18 March at Anfield. The score in the first match was 1:0 in favour of Galatasaray. Liverpool vs Galatasaray: prediction, betting odds and statistics.
Liverpool
Liverpool played at Rams Park in Istanbul for the second time this season, and on both occasions the score finished 1:0 in favour of the hosts (previously in the league phase). With the game completely even (xG was 1.34:1.31), everything was decided by a single goal scored in the 7th minute. Now Liverpool need to win at home by at least a two-goal margin, while a narrow victory would take the tie to extra time. Interestingly, the club are featuring in the Champions League round of 16 for the eighth time in the last nine seasons, but they have been eliminated at this stage in the previous two ties. In addition, Liverpool have lost 11 of their last 16 European two-legged ties when they were beaten in the first leg.
- Liverpool’s no-draw run in this competition stands at 30 matches (21 wins and 9 defeats).
- At least one team failed to score in 8 of Liverpool’s previous 11 Champions League matches.
- Liverpool have won 7 of their last 9 home matches in this European competition.
Potential Liverpool Lineup (4-2-3-1)
Alisson – Milos Kerkez, Ibrahima Konate, Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez – Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch – Dominik Szoboszlai, Cody Gakpo, Mohamed Salah – Hugo Ekitike.
Defender Conor Bradley, midfielder Wataru Endo and forward Alexander Isak are injured.
Galatasaray
Galatasaray beat Liverpool at home for the second time this season, with a fast goal proving decisive on both occasions. It is notable that they have managed to keep a clean sheet in only 3 of their last 33 European matches, and twice of those came against Liverpool. Now they must protect their advantage away from home, and if the club avoid defeat after 90 minutes, they will reach the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time since the 2012/13 season. It should be noted that in their previous four two-legged ties against English opposition, Galatasaray have progressed twice and been eliminated twice. It is also worth adding that the Turks have gone through in 14 of their previous 17 European ties after winning the first leg, while in 2 of their last 3 ties when they held a one-goal advantage, the Istanbul club were knocked out.
- Galatasaray have failed to win 5 of their last 7 matches in this competition (1 draw and 4 defeats).
- At least one team failed to score in 5 of Galatasaray’s previous 7 Champions League matches.
- Galatasaray have lost 7 of their last 8 away matches in this European competition.
Potential Galatasaray Lineup (4-2-3-1)
Ugurcan Cakir – Sacha Boey, Davinson Sanchez, Abdulkerim Bardakci, Ismail Jacobs – Lucas Torreira, Gabriel Sara – Noa Lang, Leroy Sane, Baris Yilmaz – Victor Osimhen.
Defender Davinson Sanchez is unavailable due to suspension.
Referee
Szymon Marciniak (France)
Matches – 7 (International matches, 2025/26);
Yellow cards shown (including second yellows) – 23;
Yellow cards per match – 3.3;
Red cards shown – 0;
Fouls per match – 26;
Penalties – 29%.
Liverpool vs Galatasaray: Match Prediction
Despite the Turks recording two straight wins over Liverpool in this Champions League campaign, we side with the English team, just as the bookmakers do. Galatasaray are excellent on their own ground, where they are ready to give any opponent a real test, but away from home they have mostly disappointed. In five away matches in this European competition this season, Galatasaray have suffered four defeats, beating only Ajax, who had a disastrous league phase. On top of that, the Turks have failed to score in their last three away matches in this tournament.
In the previous round, the Istanbul club came close to being knocked out of the Champions League despite holding a three-goal advantage over Juventus after the first leg, which they won 5:2. In the return match, the Turin side got their revenge (3:0). We believe Liverpool can do something similar in this tie. After all, the home team are very strong at Anfield, where they have won 11 of their previous 14 matches in this competition.
In addition, in Liverpool’s last six home European clashes with Turkish opponents, they have recorded five wins and one draw, keeping a clean sheet on five occasions. We will also add that Galatasaray have won only 1 of their last 13 away matches in European competition against Premier League opposition (3 draws and 8 defeats).
Prediction: Liverpool (-1.5)
