PSG's wastefulness keeps Liverpool's hopes alive in Champions League

PARIS, April 8 : Paris St Germain were left ruing missed chances that kept Liverpool in contention in their Champions League quarter-final despite a convincing 2-0 home win in Wednesday’s first leg, with the visitors admitting they had been in survival mode for long spells.

The defending champions prevailed thanks to goals by Desire Doue and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia but Ousmane Dembele and Nuno Mendes missed golden chances in the second half that would have virtually sent them into the semi-finals.

"We had clear chances to score more goals. We kept Liverpool alive, but we’re happy with the performance. We want to stick to the same approach — it’s what we’ve been doing for a long time," fullback Achraf Hakimi said.

Teammate Warren Zaire Emery, who with Joao Neves and Vitinha bossed the midfield, also regretted the missed opportunities.

“We could have scored more goals, which is a shame. 2-0 is already good, but nothing is done. We’ll go there with the same intentions, looking to win the match,” he said.

“We’ll need to stay focused and do what we did here. We always try to prepare games the same way, playing as high up the pitch as possible. We had plenty of chances and should have put them away."

Coach Luis Enrique echoed the sentiment.

“It’s a shame, clearly. We put in a performance worthy of our supporters. We played very well and deserved more goals. But this is the Champions League. We’re happy, and there’s still the second leg to come,” he said. 

TOUGH TASK AT ANFIELD

Liverpool took a cautious approach to the game with three centre backs in a five-man defence and it kept them afloat but they might struggle next week when PSG will be looking to punish them on the break.

Captain Virgil van Dijk was still hoping his side would be