Liverpool manager Arne Slott was not too disappointed at not being able to secure top spot in the Champions League with games remaining, as his priority was securing a direct place into the last 16.
The 2-1 win over Lille extended their 100 per cent record to seven games and looked set to give them a secure lead at the top of the table heading into next week’s academic trip to PSV Eindhoven.
However, as second-placed Barcelona scored two goals in the 86th minute to seal a dramatic 5-4 come-from-behind victory over Benfica, Slott’s side looked set to secure their spot at the top of the table with a point on home soil. need to be acquired.
“I think 18 points would have been enough to get into the top eight, but 21 points is no argument,” Slott said.
“If you’re the No. 1 seed in tennis, it’s better to play against the No. 24 than the No. 12, but that’s a ranking based on years.
“Right now we are in a format where there are teams who get lucky draws and teams who get unlucky draws. That could be an advantage or it could be a disadvantage.
“The most important thing for me was that I was able to skip the (playoff) round.”
Liverpool 2-1 Lille
Mohamed Salah scored the opening goal, becoming the first Liverpool player to score 50 goals in Europe.
“Special is the word to describe Mo’s performances at this club. He has been outstanding at this club for many years,” Slott added.
“It was a great goal today. When Mo plays one-on-one, there is a very good chance he will score.
“But this goal says a lot about the work rate of the players who got the ball back before Curtis (Jones) passed it to Mo.”
Lille equalized with Jonathan David’s only shot on target, ending Liverpool’s run of consecutive defeats without conceding in the competition in a club-record 9 hours and 59 minutes, with Harvey Elliott scoring the winning goal.
Slott said he was “very happy” about surpassing the record set in the 2005-06 season under coach Rafael Benitez.
“I’m all about the quality of the players, firstly, and secondly, these players have a quality work rate.
“When you combine those two things, it’s very difficult to score against a team. Apart from that, there are also games. If you look back at the game against Girona, for example, they created quite a lot of chances and Alisson at that time It was wonderful.
“So the good thing for me is that instead of keeping clean sheets by defending a lot, I keep clean sheets by attacking a lot.
“I like it better this way, and I think the fans like it as well.”
