Liverpool squad on turning Europe red as love affair with Istanbul and penalties continues

Liverpool players were in high spirits after Europe again turned red following their UEFA Super Cup win over Chelsea.

Jurgen Klopp’s side made the trip to Istanbul where another piece of European silverware was on the line, with Chelsea the side standing in their way of opening their silverware account in 2019/20.

While Liverpool had dominated much of the opening proceedings, they were left to lament their sloppy play as Chelsea took advantage to establish a one-goal lead into half-time.

Sadio Mane would then put the Reds in front with a strike in the second half and in extra-time, only for Frank Lampard’s side to be handed a questionable penalty decision to take the game to a shootout.

Liverpool in a European final in Istanbul which was to be decided on penalties was only ever going one way, and Adrian proved to be the hero to cap off a remarkable couple of weeks for the former West Ham man.

For Sadio Mane, who was named Man of the Match, the performance mightn’t have been 100 percent but Liverpool’s mentality was spot on and he felt they were deserving winners on the night.

The No.10 was also full of admiration for the “best fans in the world” as he eyed continued success with the team alongside the Liverpool faithful:

“It was very important for us to win this trophy because the award is here to win.

“We know that it wasn’t our best game but it’s normal, it’s part of football and I think sometimes you don’t need to play 100 percent or to be physically 100 percent to win trophies.

“Mentally we were here and we gave everything until the end, we deserved to win tonight and we are really proud and very happy.

“I think the ambience in the stadium was just amazing like as always when Liverpool are playing, I always say it we have the best fans in the world so I think sometimes they make it easier.

“We always play 12 against 11 so that gives us more motivation all the time on the pitch and together we are going to carry on and win more things.”

Taking to Instagram following the game, Trent Alexander-Arnold and James Milner drew comparisons to Liverpool’s previous success in Istanbul – which always seems to come “the hard way”:

Jordan Henderson, Divock Origi and Andy Robertson were simply overjoyed with being crowned UEFA Super Cup champions:

And it was a matter of celebrating “another one for the cabinet” for the likes of Joe Gomez, Naby Kieta and Mohamed Salah:

Similarly, Roberto Firmino, Fabinho and Gini Wijnaldum all shared their delight as “another title” was clinched after a hard-fought battle to ensure Europe remained red:

And while Alisson may not have been able to play a part, he was still a source of support from back home:

Well done boys!! ???? pic.twitter.com/2LUPLANUyj

— Alisson Becker (@Alissonbecker) August 14, 2019

The victory will provide another major boost to confidence and morale, but Liverpool will have little time to savour their victory, however, as a swift return to Premier League action awaits on Saturday when the Reds make the trip to face Southampton.