Julian Nagelsmann told his post-match press conference that RB Leipzig players received yellow cards ‘very fast’ during their 2-0 defeat to Liverpool in the Champions League on Tuesday.
The German also pointed out that ‘Liverpool didn’t receive a lot of yellow cards’ during his side’s first-leg defeat in Budapest.
During the game, the Bundesliga outfit picked up five yellow cards to Liverpool’s two – Ozan Kabak and Jordan Henderson were the ones to go into the book for the English side.
Nonetheless, after Tuesday’s showdown, Nagelsmann shared his thoughts on the physicality of the Premier League champions.
“I don’t think we never showed enough willingness or physical power,” said Nagelsmann. “We have a lot of other qualities which we showed.
“English teams are used to play very physically and they look different. This is normal. This is known.
“Yes, stopped kind of very quickly with a lot of yellow cards. Liverpool didn’t concede a lot of or didn’t receive a lot of yellow cards.
“But we received them very fast, so we were hampered a little bit. Stopped a little bit because you have to take care.”
Liverpool should progress from here on in, but their problems in recent weeks still pose the question about a possible upset in the return leg.
The German club have the firepower to mount an unlikely comeback, but it’s going to be difficult to stop a certain Mohamed Salah from getting on the scoresheet again.
That one goal will be needed to calm the nerves of those from Merseyside as they bid to win a seventh European Cup.
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