Valverde: No One Thought We Could Win the Champions League After Losing to Sheriff Back Then; The Loss Is Due to Lack of Concentration

In the recently concluded UEFA Champions League match, Real Madrid lost 0-1 to Liverpool away from home. After the game, Federico Valverde accepted an interview with the media.

Valverde said: “Given the tight schedule, and the fact that losing here might still allow us to qualify for the top eight… But well, for Real Madrid, we must do our utmost to fight for victory. Indeed, when we won the Champions League, we also lost to Sheriff Tiraspol in our first game at the Bernabéu, and back then no one thought we could win the Champions League later.”

“The loss is not due to attitude issues, but a lack of focus when defending their set pieces. We already knew their set pieces are strong and threatening, and we should have been more concentrated.”

When talking about Thibaut Courtois, Valverde stated: “We have one of the best goalkeepers in the world—maybe even the best—but that’s football.”