Jurgen Klopp insists he can still see Liverpool progressing through despite another disappointing draw

He believes the Reds aren't getting the luck they need

Klopp thinks Liverpool will still progress (Getty)

Despite having picked up just two points from games Liverpool have dominated, Jurgen Klopp insisted he could still see a clear way through to the knockout phase of the Champions League.

As they had in the opening game against Sevilla, Liverpool were left to rue squandered chances and missed opportunities against Spartak Moscow. Two points from two matches is not a great return but with home and away fixtures against Maribor, the weakest club in the group, to come, Klopp is not facing a crisis.

“We are strong enough to qualify,” said the Liverpool manager. “The door is open but we have to walk through. We can see a bit of light. We have to stay cool, work hard and we will be all right.”

The debate about Liverpool’s shaky defence and their choice of goalkeeper has obscured the failure of their forwards to put to bed two matches they have dominated.

The Liverpool captain, Jordan Henderson, reflected on his team’s lack of ruthlessness. Klopp focused on their absence of luck. He also argued that the free-kick from which Spartak Moscow took the lead should not have been awarded.

“We are not the most lucky team in world football,” he said. “But we did very well in creating chances against a defensive-oriented team. The free-kick was not a foul, the ball was won cleanly, although it was a brilliant free-kick. We could have created even more chances, that is the crazy thing.

“The only important thing is to go through the group. That is still possible for us. We should have won both games but we didn’t and that is our fault. There were a lot of good things about our performance but it was not a good result.”

The Chelsea manager, Antonio Conte, had phoned the Spartak manager, Massimo Carrera – who had been his long-time assistant with both Juventus and Italy – to advise him on how to play Liverpool. Carrera said that they also discussed where they were going on holiday but what neither Conte nor Carrera could account for was Liverpool’s inability to convert their chances.

Klopp was clearly irritated by a question on why Liverpool had not scored more. “Why didn’t we score more goals? Because we didn’t. It is a big question. Perhaps we were unlucky. There were good saves and we made some wrong decisions at some decisive moments. That is how football is. The only way you can change it is to do it again and then do it again.”