put his goalkeeper Jan Oblak on a par with Lionel Messi.
Defending champions Liverpool FC were surprisingly eliminated against Atlético Madrid after two UEFA Champions League round of 16 defeats. This was largely due to Jan Oblak.
The world-class keeper brought Liverpool’s highly acclaimed and dangerous attacking machinery around Mo Salah, Sadio Mané and Roberto Firmino to the point of despair.
No wonder Atlético coach Diego Simeone was full of praise for the top performance of his goalkeeper after his 3-2 victory at Anfield Road – and deservedly put Oblak on a par with world star Lionel Messi.
“Our goalkeeper is the best in the world. He decides games the way Messi does for FC Barcelona,” said Simeone.
The Slovenian held on Wednesday evening in a sensational manner and with his numerous parries secured the Rojiblancos a place in the quarter-finals of the top flight.
Atletico keeper leaves Liverpool desperate
After the 1-0 win in the first leg, the Madrileneans went into the game with a very defensive attitude and wanted to keep the score as long as possible.
This in turn opened up a lot of space, ball possession and chance after chance for Jürgen Klopp’s team. But Oblak could hardly be overcome. Only shortly before the break Georginio Wijnaldum scored in the 43rd minute to make it 1-0 for the Reds. In the second half no more goals should be scored.
Only in extra time Oblak had to take the lead again in the 94th minute, when Firmino increased to 2-0 for Liverpool. The Slovenian had no chance. But the joy did not last long for Klopp’s charges.
While Oblak held on sensationally, Liverpool’s substitute goalkeeper Adrián made a mistake on the opposite side, when a badly missed pass to Joao Félix saw Marcos Llorente (97th minute) put Liverpool out 2-1 and put them out of the top flight.
Oblak with strong nine saves
For Liverpool, who now needed another goal to go forward, threw everything forward. But Oblak was always the end of the line, despite 34 shots on goal and a 16-3 corner for the Reds.
According to Squawka, Oblak parried nine times when the going got tough. Best result for a keeper in Liverpool this season and also a season record for the knockout phase in the Champions League. The 27-year-old was on hand at the back, while his team also played their counterattacks in front.