By Our Special Correspondent
Long after the match ended, Villarreal fans stayed on their feet cheering at the La Cer mica Stadium. The result was not what they had hoped, but the feeling was of a job well done. There was more pride than sadness for the modest Spanish club after it came up just short of pulling off yet another upset against a European powerhouse in the Champions League. Villarreal coach Unai Emery said after the team's 3-2 loss to Liverpool in the second leg of the Champions League semifinals on Tuesday. Villarreal scored twice before halftime to erase a 2-0 loss from the first match in England, but it couldn't keep up with the six-time European champions in the second half Villarreal certainly gave it a good run, after having already eliminated Juventus in the round of 16 and Bayern Munich in the quarterfinals. Not bad for a team based in a city of 50,000 people in southern Spain and with one of the smallest budgets among all Champions League teams.
Liverpool coach J rgen Klopp had nothing but good words about what Villarreal achieved. The stadium, team, coach it was unbelievable what they set up. Liverpool will be playing in its 10th final in the top European club competition, and third in the last five seasons. Villarreal won the Europa League for its first major title last season, beating Manchester United in the final. It was making only its fourth Champions League appearance, having reached the semifinals in 2006 and the quarterfinals in 2009, both times losing to Arsenal. We really wanted to give our fans their first Champions League final, and it hurts that we were not able to do it, veteran Villarreal defender Ra l Albiol said.
The loss also means there will be no first Champions League trophy for Emery, who had never made it past the round of 16 until now. He has four Europe League trophies in his career, including with Villarreal last season. Although we haven't quite been able to take that last step to the final," Emery said, "we must continue on this path we are on.
Comments