Liverpool knocked out of Champions League with loss to Real Madrid as Karim Benzema inflicts more misfortune alongside Jurgen Klopp

Liverpool failed to pull off the miracle in Madrid as they were knocked out of the Champions League by the record winners.

Jurgen Klopp’s men lost 1-0 away to holders Real Madrid, who entered the second leg of the round of 16 with a 5-2 aggregate lead.

Klopp’s Liverpool fell victim to Real Madrid again (/caption)

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Karim Benzema scored the only goal of the second leg at the Bernabeu(/caption)

And it was Karim Benzema who once again delivered the crushing blow, with the Frenchman adding to his two goals at Anfield in the first leg.

The former Lyon striker also scored in the Champions League final between the two teams in 2018.

Few would have expected the Reds to overturn the three-goal margin, with even Klopp conceding his side were highly unlikely to progress to the quarter-finals.

But the Merseyside side certainly had their chances and were unlucky not to score in the first half at the Bernbaeu.

Darwin Nunez should have broken the deadlock early on after being played by Mohamed Salah, but his tame one-on-one shot with Thibaut Courtois was easily saved as he rolled him safely into the middle of the goal .

Diogo Jota then fended off the next chance for the visitors after being tracked down by Salah, only to miss his left-footed attempt.

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Rex

Nunez tested Courtois again with a looping header and a curling strike, while Cody Gakpo forced the Belgian shot-stopper into action with a ferocious drive.

But it was Real who had the best chance as Alisson skillfully stopped Benzema from slamming home from a few yards, while showing great reflexes to prevent Vinicius Jr from close range.

And he managed to tip Eduardo Camavinga’s strike from afar on the bar.

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Los Blancos legend Benzema was once again the hero of the Spanish team (/caption)

Klopp would have been delighted with his side’s fighting display, but his side struggled to carve out chances in the second half as Real began to control the game.

And they finally got their reward in the 78th minute when Benzema fired home an empty goal after Vinicius Jr squared the ball to him inside the box.

Liverpool pressed for a late equalizer but there was no real quality when they came in the final third, with Real never looking in danger of conceding.

Having lifted two trophies last season, Liverpool will end this campaign without any major silverware having also been knocked out at the start of the FA Cup and Carabao Cup.

And attention will now turn to trying to secure Champions League football next season, with the club currently sitting sixth in the Premier League.

Their recent defeat at Bournemouth leaves Liverpool six points clear of fourth-placed Tottenham, despite having a game less against Spurs.

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