Jurgen Klopp congratulated Pep Guardiola’s Man City on being crowned champions of England as he admitted feeling ‘disappointment’ following final-day drama.
With 15 minutes to go, Liverpool needed just one goal to move top of the table as Man City trailed Aston Villa 2-0 at the Etihad stadium. But just moments later and that chance was gone, as City miraculously netted three times in five minutes to take the lead. Liverpool did what they needed to do by beating Wolves 3-1, but ultimately it wasn’t enough as the Reds settled for second place.
Reacting to the drama, Klopp admitted to feeling disappointed, however, he insisted what Liverpool achieved this season was still incredible.
Speaking to Sky Sports, he said: “Congratulations to Man City and Pep Guardiola. Thank you to Aston Villa and Wolverhampton for making a proper game of it.
“It’s not the result we wanted. It was a bit of a rollercoaster. I don’t know the results exactly but I know they were 1-0 up – were they 2-0 up as well? Of course at the moment there’s disappointment here as well.
“If it’s 5-0 to City after 10 minutes it’s just a normal game for us. It wasn’t our best game either, but it’s all good. 92 points is absolutely incredible. We wanted it all, but now it’s OK.
“[Finishing second] is the story of my life. I’m still record holder for not getting promoted in Germany with the highest points tally. You need to get more points than any other teams, but we didn’t do that.
“You can’t do more than give your absolute best and that’s what the boys did again. We chased the best team in the world to the wire, that’s absolutely special. We’ll build a team again and go again.”
Jurgen Klopp thanks ‘best group’ of players he’s ever had
Any disappointment the players feel must be dealt with by Saturday. Klopp’s men go again as they challenge for their third trophy of the season in the Champions League against Real Madrid.
But Klopp had no doubt his players would bounce back, as he admitted he had never worked with such a great group.
He said: “I’ve already told them 500 million times. This is the best group I’ve ever had. It’s a joy to come into work every morning. We need a solid basis to react to defeats. We know why we didn’t make it – we needed a bit more consistency in the first half of the season.
“If people on the outside don’t understand how special this club is, I can’t help them. Hopefully now, we’ll get our third trophy of the season.”