Paulo Di Canio has accused Jurgen Klopp of not taking the challenge of Inter Milan seriously with his midfield selection.
The German went for a trio consisting of Curtis Jones, Fabinho and Thiago Alcantara, with the Reds losing 1-0 at Anfield against the Nerazzurri.
“Liverpool did not win 5-0 in the first leg,” the former West Ham star told Sky Italia (via the Echo). “Tonight, they tried to manage by playing with a midfield that underestimated the strength of Inter.”
An aggregate score of 2-1, however, courtesy of a 2-0 win earlier at the San Siro, was enough to see the hosts through to the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
Quite how we underestimated our opponents on the night by starting two world-class midfielders in Thiago Alcantara and Fabinho is ultimately beyond us.
That’s not to forget either the comfortable performance of Curtis Jones, who played a more subdued role for us as per the manager’s demands.
By all accounts, looking at the pertinent stats assessing the contest between ourselves and Simone Inzaghi’s men, it would appear that we were the superior outfit of the two.
On another night, that may very well have been reflected in the scoreline.
#Ep38 of The Red Nets Podcast: Dissecting a Trent myth, previewing Inter Milan… and more!