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Thibaut Courtois and Federico Valverde were both in agreement regarding Real Madrid's defeat against Liverpool at Anfield in the Champions League, noting that the stadium is a difficult place to pick up points.
Xabi Alonso's side fell to a 1-0 defeat but Courtois' top form in goal was the only reason the scoreline was not more one-sided. The Belgian was in superb form for most of the game at Anfield.
"It's a very difficult stadium where you can lose," he told the Spanish television network Movistar. "You have to show your face, play better, but these are matches that are decided by details.
"It's a shame. I tried to keep the team together, but in the second half, especially, we committed too many fouls near the area, where they are good, and that's how they scored the goal.
"We were good with the ball, we defended well, but we lacked something in the final third, where we struggled to get forward and lost possession too often.
"We need to improve. Ultimately, we're playing at one of the toughest grounds in the Champions League, and we can lose, even if we don't want to. Now we have to beat Olympiacos away and then face Manchester City at home."
Arne Slot has spoken at length in recent weeks about the importance of having a positive set-piece goal difference, and that proved to be decisive here.
"Some fouls are unnecessary, while others are necessary to stop a dangerous attack," Courtois said. "The foul that led to the goal wasn't necessary, and I think [Ryan Gravenberch] dived when he saw Jude's leg.
"We lacked clean passing and better possession in the opposition's half. That's where we need to improve against good teams away from home."
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Valverde was in agreement about Anfield being a tough place to go. Last season, he also played right-back for Real Madrid against Liverpool, with the Reds coming out on top then too.
"We came here to try and win, and to take all three points," Valverde told Real Madrid's official website. "We know it's a very difficult ground; they press hard.
"I think we had chances. In the end, we lost because of a set piece that we should have converted much better.
"They headed three consecutive set pieces. We knew they were strong on set pieces, and we had to be stronger than them and defend better, with more desire and attitude.
"We had the first half more under control. Both teams had scoring opportunities, but we felt comfortable with the ball. We needed to fill the box more when we attacked. Sometimes we were a bit too defensive because they are very quick on the counter-attack.
"We wanted to win. It’s always great to win here, like we did once. It’s something unique. Today we had to lose.
"We want to thank the fans who came out in this weather. We’ll keep improving. It’s a tough blow for us because we were on a run of good games."
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