'We're pleased with 2-1 but the tie is not over'
Jordan Henderson departed Rhein-Neckar-Arena pleased with Liverpool's 2-1 win over Hoffenheim but aware that the Champions League tie is far from over.
The visitors edged an action-packed contest in Germany on Tuesday night courtesy of a sensational free-kick from Trent Alexander-Arnold and James Milner’s deflected effort late in the second half.
But Simon Mignolet had earlier saved a penalty and Mark Uth eventually found the target for the home side with three minutes remaining to leave the qualifier in the balance ahead of the return at Anfield.
“We’re disappointed with the goal. We would definitely have wanted to take a clean sheet back to Anfield,” Henderson told BT Sport after the game.
“But overall, we’ve got to be pleased with the result and how we played at times. I thought we looked really dangerous on the counter-attack and probably could have scored a few more. We’re pleased to take the 2-1 back to Anfield.”
The captain continued: “We knew it would be a tough game. We looked at their strengths and weaknesses – they’re a very strong team. We knew it would be difficult.
“Obviously Si made a great save from the penalty to keep us in the game early on and then we grew in confidence as the game went on. We probably could have scored a few more.
“But the tie is not over yet, there’s another game to play at Anfield, so we’ve got to make sure it’s another good performance to get to the group stage.”
LFCTV GO: Watch highlights of the win at Hoffenheim