LIVERPOOL, England : While Liverpool had to settle for a 1-1 draw with Aston Villa that all but doused their hopes for a Champions League berth, manager Juergen Klopp said considering where his squad were a few weeks ago, he was satisfied with the result."It's a draw and that's okay, that's okay," Klopp told a press conference.Liverpool looked for much of the season to be destined for the Europa League rather than the Champions League anyway, he added.
But his team arrived at Anfield on Saturday having won seven in a row for a late charge at the top four. "We were too long not good enough ourselves," the German manager said, summing up the season. "And I think we made it pretty exciting.
I didn't think that was possible seven weeks ago. The boys did really well in that period."I think people enjoyed it as well, you could see today they are not angry with us.
They are looking forward to a new Premier League season and the European league season. So do I."Jacob Ramsey gave Villa the lead in the first half and they were able to keep the hosts at bay for most of the match.However, the Anfield crowd exploded when Brazilian Roberto Firmino came off the bench to score a dramatic equaliser in the 89th minute in his final home appearance for Liverpool after eight trophy-laden seasons.Firmino, Naby Keita, James Milner and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain are all leaving Liverpool when their contracts expire, making for an emotional afternoon, said Klopp, adding that he will miss their contributions on and off the field."I know (Firmino's) kids, I've known them all since they were babies," he said. "Same for (Milner).