What Klopp told Liverpool players at halftime against Villarreal

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has revealed his half-time talk to his players after trailing Villarreal. 

The Reds found themselves trailing after 45 minutes courtesy of  Boulaye Dia and Francis Coquelin’s goals. However, Liverpool came from behind to beat the Spanish side 3-2, 5-2 on aggregate to advance to this year’s Champions League finals. 

Speaking after the match, Klopp explained what he told his players. 

“At HT I told the boys to play better than the first half!” said Klopp.

“Usually we try to find a situation to show them which explains it. I told them to find one situation. Pete Krawietz couldn’t find any! It was clear, the start was difficult for us to take. We tried to force it and kicked too many long balls. It was never enough to gain momentum.”

“So we explained what we had to do to get stronger and move smarter. We couldn’t find the half-spaces, the front three were too fixed.”

“There was no flexibility so we had to mix it up. We played into their hands. I told the boys I wanted to read the headline: ‘The mentality boys are in town’. I wanted us to go for it. For me, it was like this.”

The Reds will now face either Real Madrid or Manchester City in the finals. 

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