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Liverpool crashed out of the Europa League at the quarter-final stage despite winning 1-0 against Atalanta on Thursday, as they slumped to a 3-1 aggregate defeat.
Trailing 3-0 from the opening leg, Liverpool set about making amends straight away and went in front on the night through a Mohamed Salah penalty after just seven minutes.
The hosts may have expected an onslaught after that, but it never arrived as Liverpool ran out of ideas the longer the game progressed.
Mail Sport’s Sam Brookes rated the players on both teams on Thursday night.
Jurgen Klopp watched his side crash out of the Europa League on Thursday night
Atalanta (3-4-2-1)
Juan Musso – 6.5
Sharply off his line to deny Diaz inside the opening 15 minutes as Liverpool started on the front foot.
Juan Musso came off his line well to deny Luis Diaz inside the first 15 minutes
Berat Djimsiti – 6.5
Produced a crucial interception to cut out a through ball from Salah that looked set to put Diaz in on goal.
Isak Hien – 6
A little fortunate to get away with just a yellow card after a clear handball in the first half. Whether he was the last man is debatable – a call that could have gone either way. Looked more comfortable in the second half.
Sead Kolasinac – 6
Not easy for the ex-Arsenal man against a lively Liverpool front line in the first half, but had few issues after the interval.
Ex-Arsenal star Sead Kolasinac handled Liverpool’s attack better the longer the game went on
Davide Zappacosta – 6
Given a test by Diaz and Robertson down his flank. The former Chelsea defender held his own.
Marten de Roon – 6
Very different from the player who once struggled at Middlesbrough. Not afraid to put in the hard yards for his team, and was a solid presence in midfield here.
Ederson – 5.5
Usually one of the more creative players in this Atalanta side but this was more about Atalanta trying to remain solid. Not really the game for him.
Matteo Ruggeri – 5
Gave away an early penalty with a handball. Perhaps a little harsh, but got to keep your arms closer to your body these days. Wasteful with a second-half cross when well-positioned as well.
Matteo Ruggeri conceded a soft penalty in the first half with an unnecessary handball
Teum Koopmeiners – 5.5
Has been linked with a Premier League move, potentially even to Liverpool. Found the net in the first half but was just offside. Had a quiet game otherwise.
Aleksey Miranchuk – 6.5
Made some threatening runs to stretch the Liverpool defence.
Gianluca Scamacca – 6
Nowhere near the threat he was in the first leg, but still a handful at times for the Liverpool back line.
Substitutes
Charles De Ketelaere (for Scamacca, 75) – 6
Mario Pasalic (for Ederson, 75) – 6
Ademola Lookman (for Miranchuk 80) – 6.5
Liverpool (4-3-3)
Alisson – 6.5
Very secure with his handling when called upon. Also stopped a Van Dijk own goal in the first half, although the offside flag belatedly went up.
Trent Alexander-Arnold – 6.5
Outstanding cross-field pass in the opening minutes to set the tone, and then his cross forced the early penalty. Tired after the break which is understandable after his injury lay-off.
Trent Alexander-Arnold showed off his full passing range as he returned from injury
Ibrahima Konate – 5.5
A little shaky at times. Can be a little too eager to win the ball when jockeying for possession would be the better option.
Virgil van Dijk – 6.5
Appeared to suffer a finger injury right at the start of the match but battled on. A typically composed display from the Dutchman.
Andy Robertson – 6
Gave it his all as always, but well handled by Zappacosta and De Roon down that side.
Alexis Mac Allister – 5.5
Has been excellent during a tough period for Liverpool, but not quite at the top of his game on this occasion.
Alexis Mac Allister’s passing was not quite at his usual high standard
Dominik Szoboszlai – 5
Has struggled in recent weeks and his final ball wasn’t up to scratch here either.
Dominik Szoboszlai was sloppy in possession at times as his dip in form continued
Curtis Jones – 5
Still working his way back from injury and was unable to make an impact on the game, and gave the ball away too cheaply.
Mohamed Salah – 5.5
Not always the most reliable from the spot but smashed home his penalty to give Liverpool hope. Played through later in the first half but put his attempted lob well wide. He was not at his best with his link-up play and was hauled off in the second half.
Mohamed Salah scored an early penalty but was wasteful with his final pass and finishing after that
Luis Diaz – 6
Brought his usual energy to the game, but his end product wasn’t quite good enough and he went off after 66 minutes.
Cody Gakpo – 6.5
Looked sharp straight away with a promising dribble and did not slow the game down as he sometimes does. A much more positive outing.
Substitutes
Darwin Nunez (for Salah, 66) – 5.5
Diogo Jota (for Diaz, 66) – 5.5
Harvey Elliott (for Szoboszlai, 66) – 6
Joe Gomez (for Alexander-Arnold, 72) – 6
Jayden Danns (for Robertson, 80) – N/A
