Red Star Belgrade 2 Liverpool 0
Liverpool are in danger of missing out on qualification for the last-16 of the Champions League following their shock 2-0 defeat to Red Star Belgrade last night.
With Paris Saint-Germain drawing 1-1 with Napoli in group C’s other game, the Reds are no longer in control of the pool.
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Next up for the English side is a trip to the French capital, on 28 November, followed by the visit of Napoli to Anfield. Victory in both clashes would see the Reds through to the next round, but a failure to take maximum points could see last season’s runners-up failing to make it out of the group.
Pavkov’s pair
The brightest star in Red Star’s famous victory was Milan Pavkov, whose two first-half goals secured the Serbs their first Champions League win.
“I dedicate this win to our supporters,” said Vladan Milojevic, the Red Star coach. “They were phenomenal. They live for this, we live for this. It is very important for the whole country.”
Asked about the deafening noise inside the stadium, and whether it got to his players, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp replied: “It was only loud. The atmosphere singing-wise, noise-wise, was not a problem but the atmosphere after the second goal especially - in the whole club - they could smell it.
“They were in a very positive mood and we were the other way around.”
Wasteful Sturridge
The outcome would have been different had Daniel Sturridge buried a sitter when the score was 0-0. But the England striker squandered the opportunity, during a performance in which Liverpool were curiously flat.
“The first big chance to Daniel was a very big one,” conceded Klopp. “For us it was not clicking, it was not easy. I saw a few games like this already and it is really difficult to find your mojo. We made life a bit too easy for Belgrade. That is the main problem.”
The result leaves Liverpool in a precarious situation. The Reds are on six points, the same number as leaders Napoli, and one more than PSG. Red Star are still able to qualify should they win their final two group matches.
Must do better
“It is not what we wanted and we will go for the other two games 100%,” said Klopp. “We all have to deal with it now. We have to make sure it will not happen again otherwise it will be difficult as the next game is already an away game.
“The last one is a very difficult home game against Napoli. We have to make sure in Paris that we do better.”
Matchday four results, fixtures and TV guide
Tuesday 6 November results
- Group A: Monaco 0 Club Brugge 4; Atletico Madrid 2 Borussia Dortmund 0
- Group B: Inter Milan 1 Barcelona 1; Tottenham Hotspur 2 PSV Eindhoven 1
- Group C: Red Star Belgrade 2 Liverpool 0; Napoli 1 Paris Saint-Germain 1
- Group D: FC Porto 4 Lokomotiv Moscow 1; FC Schalke 04 2 Galatasaray 0
Wednesday 7 November fixtures (8pm UK time unless stated)
- Group E: Benfica vs. Ajax (live on BT Sport Extra 3); Bayern Munich vs. AEK Athens (live on BT Sport Extra 2)
- Group F: Lyon vs. Hoffenheim (live on BT Sport Extra 4); Manchester City vs. Shakhtar Donetsk (live on BT Sport 3)
- Group G: CSKA Moscow vs. Roma (5.55pm, live on BT Sport ESPN); Viktoria Plzen vs. Real Madrid (live on BT Sport ESPN)
- Group H: Valencia vs. Young Boys (5.55pm, live on BT Sport 1); Juventus vs. Manchester United (live on BT Sport 2)
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