Champions League: Klopp urges Liverpool to recover quickly after Real Madrid defeat

Liverpool FC manager Jurgen Klopp does not want to waste any time to mourn the club's latest UEFA Champions League exit at the hands of Real Madrid CF. The German manager admitted his disappointment at his side's 6-2 loss on aggregate, but he is urging his players to recover quickly ahead of a crucial week of domestic football.

On Wednesday night, Liverpool arrived at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium determined to stage a miracle comeback against the defending champions who had a 5-2 advantage from the first leg played three weeks ago in Anfield. However, there was no divine intervention and instead of a miracle, Liverpool were dealt with another blow after Karim Benzema's late goal put the hosts 1-0 ahead.

It was clumsy evening overall for The Reds, with only a few rare chances that were skilfully dealt with by Thibaut Courtois. Real Madrid looked comfortable most of the night, and Benzema's goal in the 78^th minute even came off a clumsy attempted clearance by Virgil van Dijk.

Real Madrid are through to the quarter-finals and Liverpool are heading home to lick their wounds. They can spend the international break wallowing in the defeat, but Klopp thinks they should use this instead to prepare for a crucial string of matches against Manchester City, Chelsea and league leaders Arsenal.

They are currently sitting all the way down in sixth place in the Premier League table, meaning these upcoming matches could determine whether or not they will even make it into the Champions League next season.

Klopp spoke to the press after Liverpool's exit and was unusually calm. "I really believe if you want to win the competition, you have to be outstanding. And we weren't tonight and that's fair why we go out," he said, as quoted by the Daily Mail.

He then went on to speak about his desire to be back to try again next season, which is something that isn't guaranteed for them yet due to inconsistent performances in the Premier League. "We want to be a part of it every year, and that's now a massive task for us. We all know that," he said.

He acknowledged that the upcoming games against Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal will probably define their season. If they fail, it would be the first time since Klopp took charge that Liverpool won't qualify for the Champions League.

Real Madrid has been the bane of Liverpool's Champions League journey in recent years, with The Reds losing in two finals against the 14-time Champions in 2018 and 2022. Their exit in the quarter-finals of the 2020/21 season also came at the hands of Los Blancos.

Despite this, the two clubs have shown a mutual respect for each other. In the first leg of this year's clash, Liverpool organised a tribute in Anfield after the passing of Real Madrid honorary president Amancio Amaro Varela. In return, Los Blancos played the Liverpool anthem "You'll Never Walk Alone" after last night's match.

Klopp called it a "nice gesture" and admitted that he was disappointed but not angry after the loss. He said that Real Madrid were simply the better side and he respects the result even though things went against his side.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid have a domestic battle of their own to think about. While things are going well in their Champions League title defence so far, the same could not be said in La Liga. The reigning League champions are nine points behind FC Barcelona, and they need to be flawless in the remaining months if they want a chance to retain their title. Likewise, they are 1-0 behind Barcelona in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-finals clash.