The Liverpool pictures from last night’s Champions League final defeat have been released.
Jurgen Klopp’s side suffered a heartbreaking 1-0 defeat by Real Madrid in Paris, denying the Reds a seventh European Cup title.
Six days after missing out on the Premier League title in devastating circumstances, Liverpool looked a shadow of their best selves at Stade de France on Saturday.
They dominated most of the game, boasting 24 shots to Real Madrid’s four throughout the 90 minutes [BBC Sport], but Vinicius Junior’s goal in the second half was ultimately enough.
No matter how often Liverpool tried to knock down the door, Thibaut Courtois was there with a strong palm, or cat-like reflexes to thwart the Premier League runners-up.
One incident between Jordan Henderson and Sadio Mane seemed to epitomise the Reds’ frustration on the night, with the 32-year-old captain, usually calm and collected, appearing to lose his rag with the Senegal international toward the end of the contest.
All of the Liverpool players will have been devastated by the defeat, having only won the Carabao Cup and FA Cup in a season which, until six days, offered a genuine opportunity at an unprecedented quadruple.
But nobody in red looked more upset than Virgil van Dijk.
After the game, Van Dijk dragged his jersey over his face to cover what just might’ve been post-match tears, with Thiago Alcantara, Pep Lijnders and Klopp himself among those to console the towering centre-back.
Alan Shearer pointed the finger at Trent Alexander-Arnold for costing Liverpool the goal which ultimately led to Carlo Ancelotti’s side winning, but really nobody from the English outfit was at their very best.
It looked like a hangover from losing the Premier League title last week and although it hurts now, and will for a while, perhaps some comfort can be drawn from the fact that the last time the Reds lost a final of this competition, they won it a year later.
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