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I'm an 'under-average' loser - Klopp on Atletico defeat
Holders Liverpool were knocked out 🛡 of the Champions League with a dramatic extra-time defeat by Atletico Madrid in the last 16.
A finely balanced second leg 🛡 turned on a catastrophic blunder by goalkeeper Adrian.
Jurgen Klopp's side - seeking to win the trophy for a seventh time 🛡 - thought they had overturned Atletico's 1-0 advantage from the first leg when Roberto Firmino's first goal at Anfield this 🛡 season at the start of the added 30 minutes gave them the lead in the tie.
Georginio Wijnaldum's first-half header was 🛡 full reward for Liverpool laying siege to the Atletico goal for much of the first 90 minutes.
In the second half, 🛡 Andrew Robertson was then inches away from a winner only for his header to crash against the woodwork.
And yet, as 🛡 the Kop sensed another memorable Champions League victory, Adrian - deputising for the injured Alisson - paid the price for 🛡 a dreadful clearance as substitute Marcos Llorente pounced with a low finish to secure Atletico's crucial away goal.
Llorente struck again 🛡 with another composed finish in the 105th minute and with the spirit draining out of Liverpool and their supporters, former 🛡 Chelsea striker Alvaro Morata adding insult to injury with a third in the dying seconds to send Atletico through to 🛡 the last eight.
Alisson's absence proves decisive
This game was, in many respects, a tale of two goalkeepers.
The magnificent Jan Oblak formed 🛡 a formidable barrier for Atletico Madrid, his yellow shirt a colossal presence in his penalty area as he made nine 🛡 saves and claimed countless crosses.
In contrast, Liverpool's mammoth effort was fatally undermined by the hapless Adrian, who also made an 🛡 error that contributed to their FA Cup fifth-round defeat by Chelsea.
The Reds had finally established a measure of control through 🛡 Firmino's goal, but once Adrian had hacked out a hopeless clearance and Llorente's shot beyond him into the net at 🛡 the Kop end, Atletico were ruthless.
Klopp looked and sounded suitably downcast last week when he announced his world-class Brazilian goalkeeper 🛡 Alisson had suffered a hip injury, knowing he could make the difference to a Champions League tie that was always 🛡 going to be decided on the finest of margins.
And so it proved, Liverpool's morale and fighting spirit disappearing visibly after 🛡 Adrian's mistake.
Liverpool will still complete the formalities of their first Premier League title but they pride themselves on their status 🛡 as European champions and this was a painful night.
Atletico deserve huge credit
Atletico Madrid arrived at Anfield with the usual reminders 🛡 of how the stadium's atmosphere has broken the nerve and resilience of even the elite teams in the Champions League 🛡 - as Barcelona found out in last season's semi-finals.
Diego Simeone and his players are made of sterner stuff than that. 🛡 They may have been under pressure for much of this game but not once did they buckle as they faced 🛡 up to Liverpool's intensity and came out on top.
Atletico simply love defending, each goal conceded almost a personal insult to 🛡 Simeone - who seemed to relish Anfield's atmosphere - and his players.
After Llorente scored Atletico's second, even Liverpool looked like 🛡 a side who knew there was no way they would score two goals in such limited time to progress.
The La 🛡 Liga side's approach may not be a thing of beauty but they are a brilliantly drilled team and this was 🛡 another landmark triumph for the master coach Simeone.
Man of the match - Jan Oblak (Atletico Madrid)
Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak made 🛡 nine saves against Liverpool
Match stats
This was the first time Liverpool have failed to progress from a two-legged tie in European 🛡 competition under Klopp, having won the previous 10.
Liverpool have lost a home European game for the first time under Klopp, 🛡 with this their first defeat at Anfield in Europe since October 2014.
The Reds have fallen in the last 16 of 🛡 the Champions League for the first time since 2006.
Atletico Madrid have progressed from five of their previous six Champions League 🛡 knockout ties after winning the first leg, only failing in last season's last 16 against Juventus (2-0 first leg, 0-3 🛡 second leg).
Liverpool have lost both legs of a Champions League knockout tie for the first time since the last-16 stage 🛡 in 2005-06 against Benfica.
This was the first match in the competition to see four goals scored in extra time.
Llorente is 🛡 only the second Atletico player to score twice as a substitute in a Champions League game after Sergio Aguero against 🛡 Chelsea in November 2009.
Firmino scored his first goal at Anfield in 20 games, last netting v Porto in April 2024 🛡 - 337 days ago.
Four of Wijnaldum's five goals in the Champions League for Liverpool have come in the knockout rounds.
Liverpool's 🛡 Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has been directly involved in four goals in the Champions League this season (three goals, one assist) - 🛡 his joint-best tally alongside 2014-15 when he was at Arsenal.
