(VIDEO) Was the referee right? The controversial decision that helped Liverpool

Jurgen Klopp made a decision on Thursday in Belgium. The Liverpool coach opted to rest most of the squad's stars and not include them in the starting lineup for the match against Royale Union Saint-Gilloise, the last game of the UEFA Europa League Group E. As a result, players like Mohamed Salah, Virgil Van Dijk, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Alexis MacAllister did not even travel to Belgium, while others like Dominik Szoboszlai, Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez were on the bench.

That decision affected the team's performance, as without their most important players the Reds did not show the level they usually have in the Premier League, and that they had had in the previous matches of the European tournament. And that had a negative impact on the result they got.

Royale Union Saint-Gilloise, motivated by the need to get a win that would allow them to dream of qualifying to the UEFA Europa League round of 32, were superior for most of the match and took the lead. In the first half Mohamed El Amine Amoura scored the opener after 32 minutes and Jarell Quansah netted the equaliser moments later. But before the end Cameron Puertas again made the Belgian fans celebrate.

After the break things did not improve for the English side. In fact, 16 minutes into the second half the hosts scored the third goal through Puertas again, with a good right foot shot that made it impossible for goalkeeper Kelleher to react. However, the VAR indicated to referee Orel Grinfeeld that there had been a previous handball by Lazare Amani and the goal was ruled out.

Not enough

Despite the referee's help and the inclusion of stars like Ryan Gravenberch and Darwin Nunez, boss Klopp failed to get his team to improve and they eventually lost 2-1 in Belgium. Now they will have just three days to recover, rest and prepare for a key match in the Premier League: on Sunday they will face Manchester United at Anfield Road.