Liverpool fans felt they needed to apologize to Michael Owen, the team’s former striker, after their 3-0 loss to Atalanta.
On Thursday night, Liverpool lost the first leg of their Europa League quarterfinal match at Anfield, which was a devastating setback for Jurgen Klopp’s hopes of a successful season finale.
Get all the action from Liverpool’s 0-3 quarterfinal loss to Atalanta.
There has never been a worse home loss for a Premier League team than Liverpool’s, and they are now in danger of elimination.
On Thursday night, in Italy, for the second leg, they will have to stage an extraordinary comeback if they want to advance to the semi-finals.
Once again, Darwin Nunez was at the forefront of Liverpool’s many missed scoring opportunities.
In the first half, he had a golden opportunity to put Liverpool ahead, but he missed the target with a chipped attempt, even though it seemed easier to beat the goalkeeper and score.
Attempting to replicate his spectacular lob against Brentford earlier this season in the Premier League, Nunez appeared to be going for a similar finish.
Owen, a former Liverpool striker, lauded Nunez’s technical skill but questioned his decision-making regarding the unconventional finish.
The thought of that finish is absolutely insane, he tweeted. A 1 in 10 or 2 in 10 finish is the best you can hope for.
If he can learn to slot, dink, or evade the GK, his end return will skyrocket, and he’ll have a far better chance of scoring a four or five.
That was a really refined goal, and I don’t want to ruin it for him. However, a score of 0-0 is far more entertaining to me than a Liverpool lead of three goals!
Owen questioned Nunez’s finish, which led to criticism at the time. Now, Liverpool supporters have acknowledged that they owe the former England international an apology.
One fan on X said, “He was absolutely correct. I don’t know why people were laughing at an actual Ballon d’Or winning striker.”
Another fan said, “That’s really excellent analysis; in fact, it’s perhaps the best thing a British commentator has said this season.”
A third, however, wrote: “He was 100% correct, even though he got roasted this day. Players that are incapable of scoring a typical bottom corner finish, such as Werner, Nunez, and Nicolas Jackson, consistently miss the opportunity.”
