Joe Gomez gives verdict on Jurgen Klopp's decision to substitute Sadio Mane during Atletico Madrid game

Liverpool suffered a 1-0 defeat in the Champions League last-16 first leg against Atletico Madrid as Saul Niguez scored the only goal of the game in the 4th minute. Sadio Mane, who started from the first minutes, received a yellow card in the 40th minute and was substituted at the 46th minute as Divock Origi came to replace the Senegalese star. After the game, Jurgen Klopp spoke out on Mane’s substitution and said: “Obviously the plan was to get Sadio out of the game with a yellow card. I was afraid his opponent would go down even if Sadio takes a deep breath or whatever, so I didn’t want to have that situation. That’s why we took him off. “It was difficult for the referee to deal with the atmosphere but after 30 minutes three Atletico players were already on the ground without being injured. The ref just needs to feel that game a little bit more.” The Reds defender Joe Gomez also had his say on this. “It is frustrating," said Gomez. “We’re all competitors and it’s annoying when you give your all and the ref does something and you feel as though it’s not right. That’s all the manager is saying. "We’re going to compete but if it’s taken out of our hands by the atmosphere or their reactions then we don’t want to let that disadvantage affect the game. "We have to stick to our gameplan, play our way and atmosphere plays a big part when the crowd’s jeering at certain moments in the game or fouls and so on. It doesn’t help. It will be a different occasion at Anfield.” source - Mirror

“Made sense”. Liverpool fans react to Jurgen Klopp’s comments on Mane’s substitution