Liverpool trumped Benfica 3-1 in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League 2021-22 quarterfinals away from home. However, Jurgen Klopp still has a warning for The Reds.
It was a top performance from Liverpool against Benfica in the opening leg of the 2021-22 UEFA Champions League (UCL) quarterfinals. Played at the Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica on Tuesday, The Reds won 3-1 to have a foot into the semis, heading into the second leg at Anfield. However, Liverpool head coach Jurgen Klopp has still issued a warning to his side.
As for the match, it all started with Ibrahima Konaté (17) opening the proceedings for Liverpool, followed by Sadio Mané (34), as the latter became the side's second-highest goal-scorer in the UCL after Mohamed Salah, overtaking Steven Gerrard. Post half-time, Darwin Nunez (49) pulled one back for Benfica before Luis Diaz (87) sealed the dead. However, Klopp feels that his side is not in the dreamland yet.
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"Coming here and winning an away game in the Champions League is tough. Benfica fought for their lives. We gave them a little bit too much, but they deserved the goal, even though we could have defended better. They had counter-attacks, it is not easy to keep the ball all the time, and the more risk you take, they have outstanding players," Klopp told BT Sport.
"It was a tough game, what I expected, the crowd was there, we knew 2-0 is nothing, nice but not more. They scored the goal, and it was much more open than we wanted, but the goalie was probably the best player and made a couple of excellent saves. We are two goals up, half-time. Let's keep going," added Klopp.
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Klopp credited Benfica goalkeeper Odisseas Vlachodimos for denying Liverpool more scoring chances. While he felt the scoreline should have been 4-1 in favour of his side, he was wary of the Portuguese outfit that upset Ajax. He vowed to have some excellent games in the middle before taking on the Eagles again next week at Anfield.