Joy for Joel as Reds bounce back from Napoli horror
JOEL MATIP could not hide his delight after his dramatic late winner flattened Ajax to bring respite for Jurgen Klopp. Liverpool, thrashed 4-1 last week at Napoli, were heading for a disappointing draw but Matip won it with his first goal for the club in Europe in the 89th minute.
He said: ‘I was very happy I could score. I was not sure it had gone in but all my emotion came out when I found out.’ Defender Virgil van Dijk added: ‘Coming from the horror show in Napoli, it was not easy to show a positive reaction but this is step in right direction. ‘It was very important to win and get that good feeling going. I should have scored, we were dangerous in corners, luckily the one and only Matip converted. ‘There are lots of former footballers speaking, trying to get us down. We know last week was bad but this is a step in the right direction, although we won’t get carried away.’ In normal circumstances, Klopp (above) would have saluted the Kop at the final whistle but, on this occasion, he struck a far more reserved figure in keeping with the tone of a night that had an atmosphere unlike many European matches here.
A period of silence was held before kick-off for the Queen but it was called to a halt after 24 seconds by match officials after one fan booed, another shouted ‘Liverpool’ and there was some muffled discord. Klopp said: ‘It is very important to win but I think the story of the game is typical, not for our season so far but for the situation we are in. We do a lot of good stuff, we played a really good game. ‘Then we concede when we are 1-0 up and concede the first chance. The reaction was okay, not perfect but OK. Our pressing was not as convincing as before, not a big difference but it makes a big difference. ‘That is what we try to improve again in the second half. You saw in the second half more fouls from their side, more interruptions. But we did really well, quick set pieces, we tried to take advantage and sometimes you have to take a bit longer.’