Jurgen Klopp said Liverpool deserve to be in the Champions League quarter-finals despite some "slapstick" finishing as they were beaten by Inter Milan in the second leg of their last-16 tie at Anfield.
An outstanding finish by Lautaro Martinez was not enough for the Italian champions as the late goals by Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah in the first leg in Milan three weeks ago proved decisive.
"The art of football is to lose the right games," said manager Klopp after Liverpool's seven-match winning run in Europe this season came to a disappointing end.
"I still hate it, but if there was any game we could have afforded to lose it was this one because the main target of this competition is to get through.