Liverpool 0-3 Atalanta: Europa League quarter-final, first leg – live reaction | Europa League

Right, that’s it from me. Congratulations to Atalanta. I was so impressed with them tonight, especially as they were missing the injured Giorgio Scalvini, who is one of the best young Italian centre backs. But Hien was brilliant at the back, and I thought Zappacosta and obviously Scamacca had great games, too.

Good night!

Jürgen Klopp speaks!

Nothing really positive to say. I didn’t like our tactical position in possession. We were everywhere which means we were nowhere. No counter press. It was a bad game. Atalanta deserved to win.

Can we win in Bergamo? Yes, if we play well. Can we win 3-0? I don’t know. We feel really bad. We should feel bad when we don’t play well.

We have to show a reaction on Sunday [against Crystal Palace]. I won’t watch this game back until Monday.

That’s a fairly honest assessment.

Jacob Steinberg was also at Bayer Leverkusen to watch West Ham. Here’s his report.

Andy Hunter’s match report from Anfield

An email from Vee.

I can see now why Klopp held on to Henderson and Milner as long as he did, so many current Liverpool players lack that rock-steady mentality now and it showed tonight. Some of them believe their own hype and they got taught a lesson tonight. But of this new bunch that have come in, only Mac Allister has the same. They’re trading off the reputation of the previous team and its only Klopp’s genius that has helped them over-perform because most of them are actually mediocre which is why they keep buckling at the business end of the bigger serious competitions.

I think we need to slightly temper the reaction to this game. It’s a really bad defeat, but Liverpool were not at completely full strength. Also, let’s remember that this is Liverpool’s first home defeat in 33 games. They are only off the top of the Premier League on goal difference.

That said, Liverpool were outwitted tactically here. Klopp needs to take some responsibility.

Virgil van Dijk, Liverpool’s captain, speaks:

Three-nil down is not great. Too many individual mistakes and we were punished for them. Their man marking system, they won their 50-50 duels. From tomorrow we have to switch it back on. We were wide open [defensively]. It’s a collective thing in the end. We have to do much better. It hurts. We have to react. We’ve made it hard for ourselves, but if you don’t believe, there’s no point going to Italy.

Only three foreign teams have beaten Liverpool at Anfield more than once. Real Madrid, Barcelona and now Atalanta. The Italian side also won in the Champions League back in 2020, although that was a fan-free Covid match.

“Re the Liverpool fans saying they don’t mind focusing on the league – that’s not how it works,” emails Alex Beeton. “Losing embarrassingly at home in a competition we were favourites for (I’d have loved for us to win it) doesn’t magically translate to confident performances domestically. I think there will be a real hangover from this. Also, as much as I love Gomez’s work rate, he’s really limited in passing and attacking and I felt we really missed Bradley or Trent tonight.”

Full-time scores in the Europa League

Atalanta’s players run in a line towards their rampant fans in the away end. Gasperini smiles like a little boy with a big black and blue balloon.

Liverpool’s 33-match unbeaten home run comes to an end. Klopp looks resigned to defeat as he trudges off. He applauds the fans, but there is no post-match ire that sometimes follows Liverpool’s defeats.

Full-time: Liverpool 0-3 Atalanta

90+2 min: Szoboszlai gets on the end of a flowing Liverpool move, overlapping Gomez down the right but firing straight at Musso.

90 min: Three added minutes. It does seem that from some emails in my inbox that a few of you are not devastated by the prospect of going out of the Europa League, in order to concentrate on the league.

88 min: Atalanta make their first change, at 88 minutes. De Ketelaere off for Miranchuk. The visitors are sticking to the game plan.

85 min: This isn’t a weak Liverpool XI. This isn’t a smash-and-grab. Atalanta have been the better side. Diaz shoots at goal, saved by Musso. That’s just the fourth shot on target Liverpool have had all night. Just as at Old Trafford, some really poor finishing and defending has let them down.

GOAL! Liverpool 0-3 Atalanta (Palisic 83)

81 min: Chance for Scamacca! The striker could have had a hat-trick. From a free-kick, Koopmeiners crosses to the back post, it is flicked across goal but Scamacca heads over from under the crossbar!

GOAL DISALLOWED FOR LIVERPOOL!

76 min: Jota comes on for Endo. A change in shape for Liverpool. Jota has an immediate impact, skinning Ruggeri as he drove into the Atalanta box. Foul! But it’s just outside the area. Szoboszlai stands over the free-kick, but again it’s a poor delivery and Gomez needlessly blasts a long range shot over the bar, when he had better options.

74 min: I wonder if Alexander-Arnold will also come on in place of Gomez, as Liverpool chase the game.

“Am I the only Liverpool fan whose not too excited – maybe even a little worried – about TAA coming back?” asks Paul O’Reilly. “We’ve been grand without him. Where we’ve been lacking is the inability of the front 3 to score goals! (28 shots against MUFC – barely drew 2-2!) With TAA comes an extra chink in our armour! (HE’S NOT GOOD ENOUGH TO BE ANYWHERE NEAR OUR DEFENSE!) He comes back into our defence, we leak even more goals than we already are and we don’t win anything else this season.”

72 min: Nothing is happening for Liverpool. No urgency. Diaz has gone to the right wing in an attempt to ‘mix things up’. Hmmm. Diogo Jota is getting ready on the sidelines.

68 min: Some more emails on Nunez/the art of finishing.

“Yes. High-risk finishes and that,” emails Matt Dony. “I’ve often banged this particular drum when players have gone for ridiculous outside-of-the-boot stuff. Now, don’t get me wrong, a ball played off the outside of the boot can be one of the most aesthetically pleasing actions in football, whether it’s a dinky chip or a swerving drive. But it’s incredibly hard to do. And often, it would make more sense for the players to simply use their weak foot. These guys spend their life practicing football. There is no excuse not to be reasonable consistent with their weaker foot. I know it makes me a killjoy of the highest order, but hey, we play the hand we’re dealt!”

And I have no way of verifying this anecdote from Kev McCready, but it’s a decent tale.

“I am reminding of the LFC player who missed a sitter, Bob Paisley asked him ‘What happened to you, you useless bastard?’
‘Didn’t know what my options were’ The player replied.
‘Well, the next time you’re in that situation, put it in the back of the fuckin’ net and afterwards we’ll discuss them’”.

66 min: Atalanta are coasting. At present they look the more likely to score, and seem able to contain Liverpool’s attacks with their low-ish block. Liverpool are resorting to aimlessly crossing the ball, and Gakpo – who has done almost nothing since moving to striker – is struggling to get on the end of anything. This is a Gasperini masterclass.

64 min: It should be 3-0! De Roon cleverly disguises a reverse pass to Koopmeiners, who is all alone in Liverpool’s box, but the in-form Dutchman screws his shot wide of the post! He should have scored!

63 min: Scamacca shows Nunez how it’s done. It was a brilliant, relaxed, simple finish. A reminder that the striker didn’t get into the latest Italy squad because of a lack of focus and a video game addiction. He’s by no means the finished article. But my word, the boy has got talent.

GOAL! Liverpool 0-2 Atalanta (Scamacca 61)

59 min: Liverpool make their fourth change: Nunez off for Diaz, who has been bang in form of late.

56 min: Two great chances for Liverpool! They are motoring in their attempts to find an equaliser. Firstly, Nunez does brilliantly to retrieve a lost cause, wins the ball back on the byline and cuts it back to Salah. The Egyptian’s first shot is blocked but he forces Musso into a brilliant save at the near post with his second effort. Next, Nunez is the man to find some space in the area, but he scoops/spoons a shot over. Completely off balance. He’s had a bad evening thus far.

55 min: Endo handballs right on the edge of Liverpool’s box, and Atalanta have a great dead-ball chance wide right. Koopmeiners smacks one low and hard, possibly hoping to get a deflection, but Kelleher collects it cleanly under pressure.

54 min: Nice little stat: Liverpool substitutes have contributed 49 goal contributions this season, by far and away the best return of any team in Europe’s top five leagues. So expect those three subs to have some sort of impact.

52 min: Another corner for Liverpool, who have definitely started this second half reinvigorated. The cross from Robertson is a good one, but Van Dijk heads over! He saw it late and was crowded but is disappointed. It was a decent chance.

50 min: “Re Nunez and his little dinky finishes, I wish someone would sit him down with some tapes of Rush, Fowler, Owen,” emails Alex Welby. “There’s no need to be clever about it. Just score.”

49 min: Szoboszlai takes aim from range – he can hit them – but Hien gets out to block. Corner to Liverpool, but it’s a wayward one from Szoboszlai, too deep.

47 min: Klopp was out early, before his team emerged from the second half. He obviously said his piece and left.

Peeeeeeeep! We’re underway again. Liverpool have made three subs: Salah on for Elliott, Szoboszlai on for Jones and Robertson on for Tsimikas.

Half-time scores in the Europa League quarter-finals

Half-time reading:

Half-time: Liverpool 0-1 Atalanta