Lallana felt 'petrified' during 2018 Champions League final defeat
Adam Lallana felt ‘petrified’ when he was thrown on for Mohamed Salah in Liverpool’s 2018 Champions League final defeat by Real Madrid and admits he ‘couldn’t get near anyone’ after ‘terrible’ injury-hit season at Anfield
- Adam Lallana admits he was ‘petrified’ during the 2018 Champions League final
- Lallana replaced Mohamed Salah in the first half, who picked up a shoulder injury
- The former Liverpool midfielder recalls how he struggled to ‘get near anyone’
- Lallana, now at Brighton, struggled with a hamstring injury during that season
- The 32-year-old said he was like a ‘rabbit in the headlights’ during the Kyiv final
Adam Lallana has admitted that he felt ‘petrified’ when he was thrown on to replace Mohamed Salah during Liverpool’s Champions League final defeat by Real Madrid in 2018.
Lallana, who now plays for Brighton, was sent on in place of the Egyptian star, who was forced to leave the field in a flood of tears after picking up a shoulder injury in the first half following a robust challenge from Sergio Ramos.
Despite only starting three games that season due to a hamstring injury, Jurgen Klopp gave Lallana the nod but the 32-year-old realised he was way out of his depth while having to contend with Luka Modric, Casemiro and Toni Kroos in the middle of the park.
Adam Lallana (right) admits he severely struggled during the 2018 Champions League final
Liverpool went on to lose the final 3-1, following to high-profile mistakes from Loris Karius, with Lallana revealing that he felt relieved at the final whistle.
‘Looking back now, I was petrified,’ Lallana admitted on Sky Sports’ Super 6 Podcast.
‘Maybe petrified is a bit of a strong word, but looking back I feel like I’m in a position now where I can maybe say that.
‘I had a terrible year, it was my first year when it was kind of one injury after another, and I just couldn’t find any sort of rhythm in terms of being on the pitch.
The ex-Liverpool midfielder said he was like a ‘rabbit in the headlights’ during the final defeat
‘So I’d just come back from a big, big hamstring injury, I think I’d played 15 minutes of the last game of the [Premier League] season, and I just had no rhythm, no form.
‘We’d lost the Champions League final, and I remember kind of after it finished just being relieved I got through the game.
‘I couldn’t get near anyone. I couldn’t get near Modric, I couldn’t get near anyone. I was just running around. I felt like a rabbit in the headlights.’
Lallana had played just 16 minutes in the previous month-and-a-half due to his hamstring issue before coming on in the final, leaving him out of breath while trying to keep up with everyone around him.
While he insists he didn’t let himself down, the midfielder felt a sense of relief at not making a mistake on the football’s biggest stage.
Lallana replaced Mohamed Salah in the first half, who picked up a shoulder injury after being pulled to the floor by Real Madrid skipper Sergio Ramos
Lallana (right) admitted he was also relieved at the final whistle, having not made a mistake
‘I didn’t feel like I’d let myself down when I came on and how I performed, because if you play football, the worst thing is coming on after 20, 25 minutes,’ he continued.
‘To come on into a game, especially of that magnitude and especially because I had no minutes…
‘I remember just running around and I was late into tackles. I was absolutely blowing, catching my breath.
‘I didn’t ever think “oh, I’ve just played in the Champions League final”. I just remember thinking “thank god I didn’t make a mistake leading to a goal”.’
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