"Pretty close to what I expected" - Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp admits he wasn't surprised with his side's struggles against Inter Milan
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has said that his team's struggles against Inter Milan in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday didn't surprise him.
The Reds suffered their first home defeat of the season last night (March 8), losing 1-0 to Inter in the second leg of their Champions League Round of 16 tie. However, a 2-0 success at the San Siro in the first leg last month ensured Jurgen Klopp's side progressed to the quarter-finals at the expense of the Serie A holders.
Speaking to BT Sport after the match, Klopp admitted that he expected his team to face a few difficulties against the Nerazzurri. He said (as quoted by the Mirror):
"The difficulties we had were pretty close to what I expected. Inter are a really, really good side, set up for these kind of games. It was a really interesting game. In the end we lost the game, which obviously is not cool; we didn't come here to lose a home game."
Klopp added:
"The opponent caused us problems, but if we had used our chances we win this game. We lost a lot of simple balls, which can happen, and when the ball was in the air, it was like slapstick with the wind. The counter-press was not really there. We were around challenges but not in challenges, and we didn't get the momentum; that's what we were lacking."
JΓΌrgen Klopp felt Liverpool deserved to progress to the #UCL last eight as they held off Inter with a 2-1 victory on aggregate.
The German tactician believes his team had chances to score and said that they could've done better, stating:
"Without playing brilliantly, we had clear-cut chances. Over the two legs it's completely fine that they won one and we went through. We could've done better against an opponent that makes life uncomfortable."
Lautaro Martinez strike not enough for Inter as Liverpool clinch quarter-final spot
Liverpool put out a fairly strong lineup for the game against Inter Milan while starting the likes of Jordan Henderson and Luis Diaz from the bench.
However, their finishing, combined with some excellent defending from Inter, saw the Reds fail to score at Anfield. Mohamed Salah hit both posts in the second half while Joel Matip saw a header come back off the crossbar. Milan Skriniar led the Nerazzurri's backline well, ensured a clean sheet away from home.
The game seemed to be firmly in the balance when Lautaro Martinez scored with a wonderful strike in the 61st minute. However, Alexis Sanchez was sent off just two minutes later for a second bookable offence after fouling Thiago Alcantara.
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Sanchez's dismissal seemingly allowed Liverpool to dominate the ball a bit more and see out the game. They have now progressed to the Champions League quarter-finals for the fourth time in five seasons. The Reds remain in the hunt for an unprecedented quadruple.
They have already won the Carabao Cup, while they meet Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup quarter-finals on March 20. In the Premier League, Liverpool trail leaders Manchester City by six points, but have a game in hand and a trip to the Etihad to come.