Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp says he is ready “to write a new chapter” and move on from their Champions League victory after the club concluded their pre-season US tour with a 2-2 draw against Sporting Lisbon.
Divock Origi and Georginio Wijnaldum scored for the European champions in a friendly bookended by Sporting goals from Bruno Fernandes and Wendel.
Liverpool have been without at least four of their first-choice XI in the US and Klopp is happy to be returning to England.
“It was an intense week, three games in a short period. Maybe we did too much,” he said.
“But now nobody should talk to me too often about the Champions League trophy, that is now finished. Now we can write a new chapter.
“From a sports point of view I am happy to go back to England.”
On the coolest night of the tour Klopp named his strongest starting XI which saw Wijnaldum and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain flank Origi in attack.
For the third time in as many games Liverpool conceded first, Simon Mignolet making a dreadful error which allowed a powerful Fernandes strike to go right through him.
It was a poor moment from the Belgian goalkeeper, but he went on to have a strong game, saving well from Luciano Vietto and Raphinha.
Origi grabbed his second goal of the three-match tour at the end of Liverpool’s best move to equalise, slamming in the rebound after Jordan Henderson’s header was saved, before Wijnaldum scored via a deflection from Oxlade-Chamberlain’s pass.
The excellent Fernandes then laid on the equaliser for Wendel after the break as both sides made a host of changes which stemmed the flow of the game.
“Bruno is a sensational player but that shot will not often be a goal – Simon knows that,” said Klopp.
“It was a goalie mistake, it happens. We reacted well and scored two good goals.
“That was a proper pre-season game, a lot of mistakes because of the intensity.
“We have to work on everything but we had good moments.”
