It was a chastening night for Liverpool at Anfield to say the least as Atalanta came to town and stunned us all with a thoroughly deserved 3-0 win.
There was a strangely subdued atmosphere at a stadium which is known for its raucous European nights, although the home fans who stayed until the bitter end showed a classy touch shortly after the full-time whistle.
As noted by James Pearce on X, the Reds supporters who were still in the ground recognised a magnificent performance from the away team by clapping them off the pitch in acknowledgement of how masterfully they played.
Atalanta players being applauded off by the home fans.
— James Pearce (@JamesPearceLFC) April 11, 2024
At many other English venues, such an abject performance from the home team would elicit deafening boos at the full-time whistle.
Although some jeering could be heard at Anfield, that was dwarfed by the recognition of Atalanta’s outstanding display, a classy touch that the visiting players and supporters would’ve surely appreciated.
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Even during some bleak times for the club in the past, it takes a lot for Liverpool fans to boo their own team, and it must be remembered that last night was our first home defeat in 14 months. That’d be a utopian scenario for almost everyone else in world football.
Rather than taking their frustrations out on a group of players who’s given us so many great memories in recent years, most of the Merseyside faithful preferred to acknowledge one of the best performances given by an away team in L4 for a long, long time.
Credit to those at Anfield who rightly applauded Atalanta’s efforts – Gian Piero Gasperini and co deserve every bit of praise they get for how they played on Thursday.
The goons who jeered were day trippers not getting their money’s worth. We can expect more of them as FSG price out proper supporters.
What constitutes a ‘proper supporter’ may I ask? Furthermore, who are you referring to when you refer to ‘day trippers’? I’m a Liverpool fan but I live on the south coast so it’s not practical for me to attend every week. Does that make me less of a Liverpool fan because I’m not a season ticket holder and because I don’t go every week? Surely being a fan is about more than just attendance at the games?