It’s almost over, and Jurgen Klopp wasn’t even allowed to finish it like he wanted. The kind of last great European comeback that truly cemented the German legacy at Liverpool did not occur. 

The fact that they were unable to come anywhere near accomplishing such a feat against a determined Atalanta suggests there might not be one final grandstand in the Premier League either.

Rather than leaving everyone mourning Klopp’s exit when there may still be so much left in him, this was just another game that demonstrated how this generation is, in his words, “running out of energy.”

This is virtually personified by Mohamed Salah. 

The player who has brightened European football for so many seasons was not the shadow we saw here. But to place too much emphasis on him—or even Klopp—would be unfair. This was an exceptionally low-key performance, but there’s more going on here. In a way you don’t typically hear about a Klopp team, this was just too much.

After a 3-1 aggregate victory, Atalanta more than deserved their spot in the Europa League semi-final; Liverpool simply couldn’t muster up enough against such a cunning team. Given that Liverpool had been awarded an early goal—the kind that frequently energizes these matches—it was all the more amazing. Instead, Klopp’s team performed flatly.

That was the most disheartening part, which explained why this ended in such a cowardly manner. There were numerous instances where it appeared as though Liverpool was attempting to follow their system’s rules but had forgotten how to do it. The crew was figuring things out in real time, but they were never quite done.

Usually, that indicates nothing more than extreme exhaustion. This was demonstrated by numerous last-minute mishandles or passes. That represents another peculiar aspect of the game. In fact, Liverpool had plenty of opportunities to win the game just in the first half. They even had the ideal configuration.

However, they don’t seem to be leaving with a lot of remorse. There was never a sense of one of those vintage games in here.

After all, matches such as this already have a canonical method of their own. With so many boisterous Champions League comebacks between 2015 and 2019, they have established a really special kind of European soccer. Naturally, Liverpool is among the largest and is well aware of the necessary actions.

They finished the first rather quickly. They achieved the first objective. In just five minutes, Trent Alexander-Arnold was crossing the ball when Matteo Ruggeri extended his hand. Although that was an incredible choice, the referee ought to have had an easy call. When he looked at the VAR, the penalty was verified.

Before it was taken, there was a tense moment that wasn’t solely caused by Atalanta’s fear. Liverpool’s was another one. After missing so many opportunities lately, who could even bet on a penalty? While Salah appeared to be hedging against Juan Musso diving the opposite way, he hammered it in quite centrally. That wasn’t quite the case, if the classic scenario from there is that the side that concedes subsequently crumbles. Atlanta gave a good response. They had an odd knack of drastically overhitting crosses, although they nearly got in several times.

The game became even more intense than it was in the first leg as a result. Atalanta seldom plays well, so it couldn’t be claimed that they were giving up, but Liverpool did have nearly enough opportunities to win it in the first half alone. Musso’s play so far up the pitch was almost like playing right into their hands. In an attempt to catch him off guard from the midway line, Virgil van Dijk snatched the ball. With a one-on-one, Salah had a considerably better chance, but he pathetically pushed the ball wide.