National media: Liverpool “only have themselves to blame” for “painful” cup exit

It was a grim afternoon for anyone of a Reds persuasion, and the media knew where the fault lay as Liverpool were knocked out of the FA Cup by Man United.

Jurgen Klopp‘s men were beaten 4-3 in the quarter-finals on Sunday, crashing out in the dying seconds of extra time, in what was one of the worst results of the season.

Liverpool had United there for the taking at 2-1 up late on, only for extra-time to be forced and the visitors to eventually fall apart.

Here’s how the media reacted to the Reds’ crushing loss.

A crazy game was dissected, with plenty of criticism coming Liverpool’s way…

Richard Jolly of the Independent suggested that it was one Game too far for Klopp’s men:

“Finally, in a seven-goal affair of fluctuating fortunes and emotions, seven months into Liverpool’s astonishing season, someone had found a way of stopping them in a competition.

“United did it the long way, the hard way, the dramatic way. They mustered a rousing, rattling start, capped by Scott McTominay’s 10th-minute opener. They trailed twice but they came back on each occasion.

[…]

“And it left Liverpool in a strange position: out of something. This was a match that had many of the hallmarks of their triumphs this season, yet it brought defeat.”

On X, James Pearce bemoaned Liverpool’s game management:

“Liverpool only have themselves to blame for painful FA Cup exit.

“Game management let them down badly today.”

Lewis Steele, of the Mail, thought exactly the same:

“We’ve praised Liverpool all season for their mentality and resilience but that was utterly bizarre Game management.

“Don’t think they can have too many complaints with that.”

This Is Anfield‘s David Lynch was fairly scathing, say the Reds got what they deserved:

“Even the most optimistic of Liverpool fans would struggle to paint today’s defeat at Old Trafford as anything other than deserved.

“The Reds came into this Game 17 points ahead of their bitter rivals in the Premier League table, and yet completely failed to underline the gulf between their sides with their performance.

“The visitors were outshot (28-25), beaten on expected goals (3.36-2.06) and also carved out fewer big chances (4-1) against an opponent that currently sits sixth in the league with a goal difference of zero.

“For that reason, even losing in the last minute of extra-time hardly felt cruel when Jurgen Klopp‘s side had been nowhere near good enough across the 120 minutes.”

Jason Burt of the Telegraph assessed the importance of the defeat in Liverpool’s season:

“This was an FA Cup tie for the ages. An FA Cup tie that will live long in the memory, that will go down in history, that will be part of folklore and, for Manchester United, an FA Cup tie that saved their season and may have saved the job of their manager Erik ten Hag.

“Liverpool are out, their quadruple hopes are over, and while this trophy is the third of their priorities it is an exit which will sting given the opposition.”

Jamie Carragher was another to take to X to echo Liverpool’s role in their own demise:

Unbelievable game & it’s a great result for Man United but Liverpool only have themselves to blame.
Scored three & still the attacking players were all very poor.
Can’t complain too much as they’ve been amazing all season.
Football bloody hell!

— Jamie Carragher (@Carra23) March 17, 2024

Finally, Lynch added that Liverpool’s response is now pivotal to their hopes of glory in May:

“Of course, once a rare defeat has been suffered, the only thing that matters is how you respond, and Klopp has two weeks to work on that aspect.

“Losing in the dying seconds against your fiercest rival can have a negative mental impact if you allow it to, but the alternative is using it the disappointment to fuel a winning run to the end of the season.

“And should the Reds go with the latter, then perhaps it could even prove a blessing in disguise to avoid the possibility of two draining trips to Wembley.

“Unfortunately, with the international break about to start, we must wait until an Anfield clash with Brighton on March 31 to find out how Klopp’s side will react.”