Jurgen Klopp believes his team should have seen off Manchester United before Amad Diallo’s dramatic late winner.
But the Liverpool boss admitted that it was the first time this season that he had seen his side ‘struggling’.
Klopp said: “We could have won the game and we would have deserved it. We were outstanding but we had to finish the game off and we didn’t. At 2-1 up, we had so many chances to kill the game off – we were in a rush in some moments and the rest is already history.
“The boys gave everything. It was a period in the second half when we should have finished it but we didn’t and we knew they could come back. I think my boys showed incredible character again… (but) it was the first time I saw my team struggling. You cannot compare our season to United’s with the amount of games.”
“Our decision-making was not great,” said Klopp. “Our second half was exceptional but when we didn’t finish the game off, it got really hard for us. The decision-making doesn’t get better the longer the game goes on. Congratulations to United for going to the semi-final.”
Klopp is still chasing Premier League and Europa League glory and the Liverpool boss now has his fingers crossed that his players come back unscathed from international duty.
He said: “Now, the boys go on international duty. We hope they come back healthy. Lucho [Luis Diaz] felt his groin, Darwin [Nunez] hamstring. Cody [Gakpo] twisted his ankle. They play again in four or five days, it’s crazy. Hopefully we will finish the season in style.”
