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The German strategist has generally enjoyed positive results on the club’s field, but Atalanta easily beat the Reds on Wednesday.
Liverpool’s 2-0 loss to Atalanta in the Champions League on Wednesday night marked the first time Jurgen Klopp has coached the Reds to such a tough loss at Anfield.
Never before, in Klopp’s 137 previous competitive matches in charge at Liverpool, had the club lost by more than one goal.
The last time the Reds suffered such a harsh defeat at Anfield dates back to August 2015, when Brendan Rodgers saw his team lose 3-0 to West Ham in the Premier League.
On Wednesday, Liverpool simply struggled to get going against their Serie A opponents and failed to register a single shot on goal, the first time they have done so in the Champions League since Opta began recording such data in 2003.
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Atalanta, meanwhile, continued his recent good form in the competition and scored twice in the space of five minutes through Josip Illcic and Robin Gosens.
Klopp had an experimental starting team at Anfield with the trio of teenagers Curtis Jones, Rhys Williams and Neco Williams, all included from the start.
Having played in the Premier League against Leicester City just 72 hours earlier, Liverpool seemed lethargic at times and James Milner admitted that they never showed their true ability.
“We didn’t get going. We know it was a poor performance and we were pretty flat,” Milner said. BT sport.
“A lot of players haven’t played together and the calendar is busy. Sometimes you have to try to get a win without doing your best, but we didn’t have that sharpness.
“We are still at the top of the group, so we have to recover and go again at the weekend. The effort is always there. They took advantage of their opportunities at the right time. Throughout the game, maybe we were a second later in the press and we created very few. ” possibilities.
“It was one of those nights where we didn’t produce the best we could. We need to get over it pretty quickly because we have a lot of games ahead of us. It’s in our hands and we have to find where we can improve.”
Despite the loss, the Reds continue to lead Group D, but are only two points ahead of Ajax and Atalanta.