Andoni Iraola insisted he could not have asked for more from his players after Liverpool kicked off their Champions League campaign with a 2-1 win over Atletico Madrid.
Marcos Llorente put the visitors ahead in the 17th minute after Julian Alvarez’s pass, but Dominik Szoboszlai equalized before half-time and Alexis McAllister completed the conversion five minutes into the second half.
But the win came at a cost, as summer signing Bradley Barkula limped off with a calf injury in the second half.
Speaking on TNT Sports afterwards, Iraola was asked about the tough opening. “It’s hard to ask for more.
“I think we showed a lot of character, especially the players after a difficult start. I loved it, the atmosphere was amazing and I feel lucky to experience it.”
The Spaniard was honest enough to accept personal responsibility for being left out cold by Atletico’s form.
“I have to take the blame from the beginning because they surprised me a little bit tactically, they played with five players in defence, in a 5-3-2 formation.
“We were expecting something different and we waited to correct that. After half-time, we played a much better game, we pressed better, and I think we became a better team.”
Mac Allister’s contribution to the match win was all the more notable given the controversy surrounding his contract status.
The Argentine had publicly made his frustration at being denied a new deal on the eve of the match – with teammates Szoboszlai and Ryan Gravenbruch recently putting pen to paper on extensions.
Iraola praised both scorers.
He said: “Yes, a beautiful goal by him and by Dominic.” “They ran a lot. Alexis was very clever – I think the first warning was very cheap.
“They were pressing to find the second goal. He’s an intelligent player and he can survive that.”
