Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp defended his team selection after his side suffered their first 90-minute defeat at Anfield since September 2018 on Wednesday night when they crashed 2-0 to Atalanta in the Champions League.
Goals from Josip Ilcic and Robin Gosens in the second half sent Liverpool to their first home defeat inside 90 minutes since September 2018 as a much-changed Liverpool side were unable to keep their undefeated home run going.
Despite the defeat, Klopp said it was imperative that he rotated his squad ahead of a packed December schedule.
“It was very important we did that,” he said after the defeat.
“In the end it didn’t work out, and that is part of the deal. I’d do it again.”
Liverpool struggled to make any headway against the Serie A side, and Klopp was set to make a quadruple substitution to introduce Roberto Firmino, Fabinho, Diogo Jota and Andy Robertson. But, before the changes could be made, Atalanta struck on the hour mark, then added a second four minutes later.
It left Klopp disappointed with the result, and he bemoaned the lack of chances created by his side.
“We had better football moments but not good enough. If you don’t have a shot on target that’s never a good sign,” he said.
Liverpool’s next Champions League test will see them face Dutch side Ajax as they look to book their place in the last 16 of the competition.
“It’s tricky. Sounds easy to beat Ajax, but with all the challenges we face in this country on top of normal challenges we face already…
“We go in a few hours to play Brighton (in the Premier League). When this game is over we start to think about Ajax.”
