JURGEN KLOPP’s overriding emotion after Liverpool secured Champions League qualification was relief more than it was joy, he has reveale...
JURGEN KLOPP’s overriding emotion after Liverpool secured Champions League qualification was relief more than it was joy, he has revealed.
The German’s side made sure that they will play in next season’s European group stages with a 4-0 win over Brighton on the final day of the Premier League season.
The pressure had been ramped up on the Reds after they squandered a number of opportunities to make sure of their place in the Champions League next year by failing to beat now-relegated West Brom or Stoke.
Added to their domestic challenges, Liverpool faced Roma over a two-legged semi-final - increasing the strain on an already injury-hit squad.
But as Liverpool prepare to face Real Madrid in Saturday’s Champions League final (7.45pm), the manager revealed the relief of finishing in fourth place.
“We had pressure until [the] last Sunday really. The thing for us, the job to do is to qualify for the Champions League,” Klopp told The Guillem Balague Podcast.
“We really think that’s the thing we should be in because we’re strong enough for that.
“We played this season for it and we all knew if we are not in the Champions League anymore for two or three rounds, we’d already be qualified for three or four weeks. We know that.
“We lost very important players through injuries and you play Everton, Stoke, West Brom and I forgot who who we played but the results were not there.
“You saw now we feel the intensity. Then comes the Champions League in between which was unbelievably intense but we could make this last little step [against Brighton] and we could do it.
“You could see it in the games as well, like Rome the last 15 minutes or whatever, that it’s really intense.
“In the moment when the final whistle came last Sunday it was really a big relief, more than happiness or being over the moon. Big relief.
“Now we’re here. We’re strong, we’ll use the time and be in good shape. It doesn’t mean we will win the game but our chances will be bigger.”
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