Liverpool Manager Says Winning Europa League Group ‘Very Important’
Liverpool booked its place in the Europa League last 16 as group winners courtesy of a 4-0 victory against Austria’s LASK at Anfield, with manager Jurgen Klopp emphasising the significant importance of clinching the top spot in Group E.
Manager Klopp said it was a great result for his side as they prepare for a busy run of fixtures. The Premier League club will now avoid having to go through a playoff round in February to reach the last 16. Liverpool sealed the top spot in Group E with a game to spare.
“We are now top of the table and that will not change,” Klopp told reporters. “That’s good, very important in the busy, busy, busy schedule we have from now on.”
Klopp said there were a lot of positives to take from the win, the only negative being they did not finish the game off sooner.
“Performance really good, nobody got injured. All good,” he added.
Liverpool next host Fulham in the Premier League on Sunday, followed by visits to Sheffield United and Crystal Palace. They conclude their Europa League group stage campaign with a trip to Union Saint-Gilloise on December 14th.
While the Europa League is one step down from Europe’s elite club competition, the UEFA Champions League, Klopp said Liverpool were determined to go as far as possible in the competition.
“Unfortunately, my career is not like this where I can choose, to be honest. I have to take what I get,” Klopp added.
“When we play the competition it’s the most important competition on the planet. Easy as that. But now we play Premier League on Sunday and so that is then the most important competition, definitely.”
Thursday’s Europa League results
TSC Backa Topola 0-1 West Ham
Freiburg 5-0 Olympiacos
AEK Athens 0-1 Brighton & Hove Albion
Marseille 4-3 Ajax
Sparta Prague 1-0 Real Betis
Rangers 1-1 Aris Limassol
Atalanta 1-1 Sporting CP
Sturm Graz 0-1 Rakow Czestochowa
Liverpool 4-0 LASK
Toulouse 0-0 Union St.Gilloise
Maccabi Haifa 0-3 Rennes
Villarreal 3-2 Panathinaikos
Servette 1-1 Roma
FC Sheriff 2-3 Slavia Prague
BK Hacken 0-2 Leverkusen
Molde 2-2 Qarabag FK.
