LORIS KARIUS has saluted his Liverpool teammates for giving him the night off against one of the most feared attacks in Europe.
The Reds goalkeeper did not have a single shot to save in Liverpool’s Champions League quarter final first leg victory over Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City last night.
And the German stopper insisted all credit for the clean sheet should be shared between the 10 men in front of him.
“It was probably the best result we could have asked for and while it is still not done – there is still work to do – we played at our highest level,” he said.
“Not to concede was so important and we defended really well. They [City] had their moments but they weren’t really clear cut.
“There were moments when we had to stick together. We were deeper than in other moments of the game but that’s what you expect against a team like this.
“At other moments we defended perfectly, starting from the front all the way to the back and that’s the only way you can do it.”
Full backs Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson were magnificent in shutting down the wide threat from Pe Guardiola’s table toppers.
But Virgil van Dijk and Dejan Lovren were a tower of strength in the middle.
However Lovren cautioned against getting too carried away with the result and insisted they were only halfway through a tie which was still in the balance.
“It’s a brilliant result but in football you never know [what may happen],” he said. “You relax and in one second it causes pressure. Against Man City they have the quality to score when they want.
“They didn’t here and it was was crucial – a massive clean sheet for us today, not to concede in the Champions League.
“But unfortunately, Hendo [Jordan Henderson] took a yellow card and misses the next leg.”
Liverpool travel to Everton on Saturday lunchtime for the Merseyside derby with Mohamed Salah likely to be rested after suffering a groin strain on Tuesday night.
And Lovren insisted they need to get through that match without further injury.
“We need to relax and keep our heads down, to work. It is a big game on Saturday, a derby. We need these three points there and it will be difficult definitely.
“But if we play our game, I’m confident we can take something from there.”
Source:www.express.co.uk