Milner: We know it was a poor performance against Atalanta.

Milner disappointed with Liverpool's display against Atalanta in the Champions League [Getty]

Milner admits Liverpool's display against Atalanta in the Champions League was poor.

Liverpool midfielder James Milner said the Reds “didn’t get going” when they hosted Serie A club Atalanta in the Champions League on Wednesday night.

The Premier League champions were thrashed 2-0 in Europe’s elite competition at Anfield, thanks to goals from Josip Ilicic and Robin Gosens in the second-half.

The ex-Manchester City admitted the football 'schedule is busy' and a lot of players haven’t played together, leading to the below-par display last night.

However, Milner told BT Sport that Jurgen Klopp's side now have to channel their attention to their Premier League tie against Brighton at the Amex Stadium this weekend.

“We didn't get going. We know it was a poor performance and that we were pretty flat,” he said.

"A lot of players have not played together and the schedule is busy. Sometimes you have to try and get a win without being your best but we didn't have that sharpness. 

"We are still top of the group so we have to recover and go again at the weekend. The effort is always there. They took their chances at the right time. The whole game we were maybe a second late on the press and created very few chances. 

"It was one of those nights where we didn't produce our best. We need to move on from it pretty quickly because we have a lot of games coming up. It's in our hands and we have to look where we can improve."

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