Klopp calls Liverpool's defending 'slapstick' and 'passive' after Real Madrid trashing

is on the verge of Champions League elimination after a 5-2 defeat against

at Anfield. Liverpool has lost six times in their last seven matches against the Spanish giants.

Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah scored for Liverpool inside 14 minutes, but Vinicius Jr scored twice in the first half to level the game. Eder Militao’s header and Karim Benzema’s brace in the second half completed the comeback.

After the match,

praised his team’s performance in the first half, but admitted they should defend better against the Champions League holders.

"The beginning was outstanding,"

he told BT Sport.

"It was us in a nutshell. It was perfect, exactly how we wanted to play, causing problems all over the place. A super intense start, 2-0 up. The whole first half was good beside the goals.

"After the first goal we became slightly passive higher up the pitch, we weren't chasing them, and we had to chase them because this is a team that when you get passive, you get punished. The second goal is slapstick. It shouldn't happen, can't happen, 2-2.

"The first situation pretty much [after half-time] they played a long ball to Vinicius. I'm not sure if it's a foul, but in the end [the referee] whistles it, and how we defend that is not OK. Then 3-2 and that doesn't help against a team who are outstandingly good on the counter-attack.

"We couldn't get back on track anymore. You need to play like the first half for the full 95 minutes. That's possible, but you need momentum back. After the 3-2 goal, it was exactly the opposite.

"They became more confident and scored great goals. One was deflected, I think. That's how it is. It's a strange one. We lost 5-2, we know that too, but there's a lot from me to take from it as well.”

Liverpool is seven points behind the top four in the Premier League, but they have two games in hand and will face Crystal Palace on Saturday.

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