Jürgen Klopp was annoyed for half a time, but at the end he threw kisses to the Liverpool supporters who had traveled with him with a satisfied smile.
At the stubborn FC Villarreal, a convincing performance after the break was enough for the Reds to move 3: 2 (0: 2) into the final of the Champions League on May 28 at the Stade de France near Paris after being down 0: 2. Opponent will be Real Madrid or Manchester City.
“Cool, we’re really happy,” said a visibly relaxed Klopp after the game on “Amazon Prime” and admitted: “The second half was better than the first.”
In fact, Liverpool didn’t look good at first. “They got going, the small stadium was on fire, they bought our guts. We didn’t have a rhythm.”
Klopp proves good hands
That changed after the break. “We thought we’d try it again while we’re there,” said Klopp, who, however, also showed a good touch with the substitution of Luis Diaz: “Through Luis”, who, among other things, scored the equalizer to make it 2-2 ( 67.), “We were much more flexible overall.
Klopp is with the Reds for the third time after 2018 (loss against Real Madrid) and 2019 (win against Tottenham Hotspur) in the final of the premier class. Thanks to Klopp, a German coach is also reaching for the handle pot for the fifth time in a row: Last year Thomas Tuchel had the Chelsea won the title.
In addition, the first quadruple for an English club is still possible for the Reds, they already have the League Cup, FA Cup, championship and Champions League victory are still possible. But Klopp didn’t want to think about that. “It’s just nonsense with this quadruple crap. We’re going to play Tottenham first, they’re the best counterattack team in the world, we have to win it.”
Liverpool ended the game with a majority
Liverpool held all the trumps after 2-0 in the first leg at Anfield but lost them in a poor first half at the seething Estadio de la Cerámica. Boulaye Dia (3′) and Francis Coquelin (41′) scored for Unai Emery’s side, who, however, visibly gave in under pressure from the guests after the break.
Despite being behind, Liverpool kept their nerve and took control of the game with patience and vigour. Luis Diaz, who came on from Klopp at half-time, was a revival.
Fabinho (62′), Luis Diaz and Sadio Mané (74′) scored the goals for the Reds, who ended the game with a majority after being sent off against Etienne Capoue (86′, repeated foul play).