Jurgen Klopp claimed finishing second was "the story of my life" after Liverpool were pipped to the Premier League title on the final day.
It was deja vu from three years ago as Manchester City fell behind and then recovered to maintain their one point lead at the top. Liverpool knew beating Wolves was all they could do but they needed a favour from Steven Gerrard and Aston Villa at the Etihad.
For a while it looked as if they might get it as Matty Cash and Philippe Coutinho had them 2-0 ahead after 70 minutes. But three goals in five minutes turned the game around and City sealed a dramatic title triumph, their fourth in five years as Liverpool were forced to settle for second.
Klopp's side racked up 92 points but still finished second. They know the feeling having picked up 97 back in the 2018/19 season, only to see City top them on that occasion. Klopp though knew about coming close but not close enough before he came to England.
He began his career in his homeland with Mainz and he and the club hold the unwanted record of having the most points in the German second tier without being promoted. Klopp said: “[Finishing second] is the story of my life. I’m still the record holder for not getting promoted in Germany with the highest points tally. You need to get more points than any other teams, but we didn’t do that.
“You can’t do more than give your absolute best and that’s what the boys did again. We chased the best team in the world to the wire, that’s absolutely special. We’ll build a team again and go again.”
Liverpool have claimed two trophies this term, seeing off Chelsea in the FA Cup and the Carabao Cup finals. They could add a third piece of silverware should they beat Real Madrid in the Champions League final, although the unprecedented quadruple is now no longer a possibility.
Klopp told the BBC : "These boys played an insane season. The opposition scored an early goal and we had to go against them, it mirrors our season. If you win only the games in which you are flying it is goodbye after 30 games,. The season is over, one point behind again, what others say I couldn't care less. I am very proud of this group, this club and how we came out of the pandemic with the atmosphere we created, absolutely outstanding. This is not the end, just a result of the season."
