Liverpool
Premier League • England
‘Book the hotel’ Jurgen Klopp backs ‘outstanding’ Liverpool to bounce back strongly from Real heartbreak
Jurgen Klopp says he will have an “outstanding group” next season and believes Liverpool will bounce back strongly from their Champions League heartbreak against Real Madrid.
The Reds suffered a 1-0 defeat against Real in Paris, with Vinicius Jr grabbing a second-half winner. Liverpool also came up against a Real goalkeeper in inspired form. Thibaut Courtois was outstanding when denying Mohamed Salah on three occasions.
A season that promised so much ends in disappointment. The quadruple was on the cards at one point with the FA Cup and League Cup already in the bag. But Manchester City pipped them to the Premier League title last weekend and now Real have denied them the Champions League.
It has still been an outstanding season for Liverpool. However Klopp says it does not feel that way right now and the defeat needs time to sink in. The German also admits that Liverpool were below their best and only picked up when Real scored.
“In the dressing room nobody feels it was a great season at the moment,” Klopp told BT Sport after the game. “We maybe need a few hours for that.
“We played a good game, not a perfect game. The boys tried everything, especially at 1-0 down then we played like we wanted to play before.”
Reds defender Andy Robertson also echoed those sentiments. Revealing the dressing room is down in the dumps after the defeat.
“The dressing room is quiet, devastated,” the Scotland left-back said. “That is what happens when you don’t win finals. We had chances, came up against an unbelievable keeper. Being honest though, we could have played better.”
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When Klopp addressed the media later in the evening he sent out a positive message to the Liverpool fans. He is confident they will be back bigger and stronger next season.
Klopp is that confident he believes everyone should start booking their accommodation for the final.
“I have a strong feeling we will come again. The boys are competitive. We will have an outstanding group next season,” Klopp told reporters. “Where’s it [the final] next season? Istanbul? Book the hotel.”
Jurgen Klopp rallying call should ease the pain
Klopp’s rallying call should act as some pain relief for disappointed Liverpool supporters. And the future clearly looks to be a bright one. Despite the loss to Real Madrid, Liverpool will be back challenging again next season. At home and abroad.
Once the dust has settled preparations will begin for next season. It will be interesting to see what happens with Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino. All three will be out of contract at the end of the 2023 and have yet to commit to new deals.
But new players will be arriving. Fabio Carvalho is already confirmed and a host of other players are on the radar. They include Barcelona starlet Gavi.
But the biggest signing of all was Klopp recently penning a new deal. So there is plenty for Liverpool fans to be happy about once they get over the disappointment of the Real Madrid defeat and start looking ahead.