Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp feels there were other factors at play
aside from James Milner's saved penalty after Southampton left Anfield
with a 0-0 draw.
The hosts were frustrated by a deep-lying and well-manned Southampton
defence but looked set to grab the breakthrough when Jack Stephens was
penalised for handball inside the box after 64 minutes.
But Milner's usual reliability deserted him as he could not quite
pick out the bottom left corner and Saints goalkeeper Fraser Forster
saved brilliantly.
Former England international Milner last failed from the spot in the
Premier League in November 2009 and had netted seven from seven this
term.
The experienced player shouldered responsibility for a setback that
left Liverpool's Champions League qualification prospects out of their
hands during a post-match interview but Klopp refused to be so harsh.
"He should not blame himself - that is football," he told Sky Sports.
"Him scoring would have helped of course but that is not the only decisive thing."
Indeed, Klopp and his men were frustrated by opponents playing with limited ambition.
"I thought it was good enough to win," he said of Liverpool's
performance. "I thought Southampton played really unlike how they
normally do.
"I'm fine with our defending over 90 minutes because they didn't really create anything.
"To play against 10 deep defending Southampton players is very
difficult. We had our moments. We could have scored, that would have
opened them up a bit.
"It is a point more, it doesn't feel like it at this moment, but it is."
Klopp added: "It is not finished yet. We all have to play our games.
"We go to West Ham, will try to win and that's all we can do. We try everything and we do not stop."
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