Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has admitted his side were outstanding for 75 minutes against Steven Gerrard’s Aston Villa.
The clash marked Gerrard’s first return to Anfield as a manager and it wasn’t the dream reunion for the Liverpool legend as his former side edged the fixture 1-0.
Liverpool secured the win thanks to Mohamed Salah’ second-half penalty. The win closes the gap on leaders Manchester City to a single point after Pep Guardiola’s side beat Wolves earlier in the day.
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The win is Liverpool’s second win in a row by a single gaol after they beat Wolves last weekend in the dying moments.
Reacting to the result, the German manager admitted: “For 75 minutes we were outstanding. Clearly the better side and played in all the areas we needed to play. We created moments.
“But we go 1-0 up and… Argh. Then the game opens up, let me say it like this! We lost the rhythm. That’s a problem in football so you have to hold it from the beginning.
“I think for Tyrone Mings it was not easy to avoid the situation [for Liverpool’s penalty] so that’s it. The one with Andy Robertson I thought was a clear penalty at the time but I have not seen it back. I don’t know if it was a clear penalty or not.
“[Steven Gerrard] is obviously a good coach. It is really strange when you meet before the game. A lot of the coaching staff from your own club is strange. They do what they do and everything is okay.”
Gerrard’s successor as Liverpool captain, Jordan Henderson also admitted that his side must be better for the full 90 minutes after struggling once they took the lead.
Henderson said: “It was difficult. The way we responded after scoring was disappointing. I thought we sat back a bit too much.
“After going in front it’s important to win the ball back and not let balls come into the box. We could have scored one or two more goals with the chances we created, but overall we’ve got to be happy with the performance and the result.
“The games are coming thick and fast. Thankfully it’s the same for everyone in this period. Hopefully we keep it going with good performances and results.”
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