Brendan Rodgers believes his Liverpool side were better than Chelsea over the two legs of their League Cup semi-final this evening, after they were knocked out 2-1 on aggregate after losing 1-0 at Stamford Bridge to Jose Mourinho's men.
Both teams attacked from the first whistle, but Liverpool appeared more threatening and gave Chelsea a number of nervy moments at the back.
However, Chelsea enjoyed the most talked about moment of the first half when Martin Skrtel appeared to bring down Diego Costa in the penalty area.
But the referee was not convinced and waved away Chelsea's appeals, despite Skrtel seeming to catch Costa.
The first half ended 0-0 and the second period was equally as tense and fiercely fought, with tempers flaring on more than one occasion. Liverpool went close through Alberto Moreno and Philippe Coutinho, but Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois was in inspired form between the sticks.
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The 90 minutes ended 0-0, with Chelsea making the breakthrough in extra-time in the 94th minute when Branislav Ivanovic headed home from a free kick.
Liverpool had no answer, but for Rodgers, his side were clearly better than Chelsea for the entirety of the two legs and deserved to go through.
And he claims he feels much pride in their performance.
Rodgers told Sky Sports: "I thought they [the players] were outstanding. Over the course of two legs we were the better team.
"We had good opportunities to score, but didn't score.
"I feel nothing but pride really because the players gave everything.
"It was difficult when they scored because the players had worked so hard, pressed the game, we changed the shape to get an opportunity to score, but I think the legs had started to go a bit in that period", the Liverpool manager added.
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