Adam keen to consign derby blues at Basel
Memories of the Phil Jagielka pile-driver which deprived Liverpool of a win over rivals Everton on Saturday will be spurring the Reds on to be ruthless against FC Basel tonight, according to Adam Lallana.
The midfielder knows he and his teammates need no added motivation on what will be another milestone night for the Reds, who play their first game on foreign soil in the Champions League for almost five years.
However, Lallana, who starred in the weekend's clash with the Blues, probing in possession, insists there is a desire to put things right after Jagielka's late stunner sealed a dramatic 1-1 draw in a derby the Reds had dominated.
"That's the good thing about having a game in midweek, especially off the back of a disappointing result," he told Liverpoolfc.com.
"[Jagielka's goal] was kind of a sucker-punch in the last minute, but we get a chance to put it right tonight. That's all you can ask for off the back of a result like that.
"It'll be a fantastic start if we can get the win. It's going to be a tough game - coming away from home as well - but I think we got valuable experience from the first game [against Ludogorets Razgrad] and we showed great character.
"If we can possess that again tonight, we've got a great chance of getting a good result."
As Liverpool and Lallana locked horns with Ludogorets at Anfield two weeks ago, Basel made the daunting trip to the Santiago Bernabeu to face the reigning European champions, Real Madrid.
Strikes from Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo, James Rodriguez and Karim Benzema followed an early Marek Suchy own-goal to humble the Swiss as Carlo Ancelotti's side inflicted a bruising 5-1 defeat.
However, Lallana insists the events in the Spanish capital have had no effect whatsoever on the Reds' preparations for tonight's fixture - and he believes a stern test awaits for Brendan Rodgers' side in their second Group B encounter.
"You can't underestimate any team," said the England international. "You have to take them all on merit.
"We know Real Madrid have some exceptional players and I heard in that game Basel had a few chances as well, so it could have been different.
"We feel that if we concentrate on ourselves and put in a good performance, keep progressing and getting better, like we feel we have been doing, then we can get the right result.
"I found out from my first game in the Champions League that you cannot underestimate any team because they're there on merit.
"Basel had a good run in the competition last year and did well against English opposition, so it's going to be a tough night for us."