“Got the better of us” | OneFootball

What board member for sport Markus Krösche, head coach Dino Toppmöller and Ansgar Knauff had to say after the 5-1 defeat at the hands of Liverpool.

Board member for sport Markus Krösche: “Liverpool got the better of us because they won the one-on-ones. They’re one of the best teams in Europe, and we need to learn how to deal with them. We need to work on things and talk about how we can be better in our duels. We can learn a lot from this match, individually and as a team. We need to be more serious and look to go out there and hurt the opposition. It’s not easy – we’ve got a young squad that has a lot to learn. We need to be more grown up, as players and as a team.”  

Head coach Dino Toppmöller: “I felt like we got off to a good start, and yes, we got the first goal. We were well and truly in the game. But it was far too easy for Robertson to send Heki through. We need to block players, like Van Dijk and Konaté did on Knauff. The goals we conceded before the break really knocked the stuffing out of us. We’ll get plenty of criticism, but we need to remember who we were playing against. What we now need to do is get that winning feeling back, so on Saturday we’ll need to give it all we’ve got, be sharper and attack the ball better.”

Ansgar Knauff: “In the first 30 minutes we implemented our game plan and we created chances up front. That’s why it’s annoying that we conceded the equaliser from a counter after we’d had a good opportunity of our own. After that, we shipped two goals from corners, and when you’re two behind against a team like that, it’s obviously going to be tough. Liverpool played really well in the second half and we couldn’t get back into the match. At the end of the day, Liverpool were just a class above us.”