Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson admits they couldn't live with Real Madrid's "quality" on Tuesday night.
The Reds took a 2-0 lad, but lost 5-2 at Anfield in the first-leg of their Champions League round 16 tie.
Henderson said, "Very difficult. It's hard to sum it up straight after the game. Mixed feelings. Frustration with the result.
"For large parts of the first half we performed well and were unlucky to be level at half-time.
"We made too many mistakes. Real Madrid punished us every time tonight.
"A lot was [down to] their quality. We didn't help ourselves for sure. We didn't defend it [Real's third goal] well enough. After that there was a few balls we could do better. The game went away from us at that point.
"The last two games we kept clean sheets. It's hard. it's difficult to come here and speak. Yes, they have a lot of quality. When you're not 100% defending they punish you. We caused ourselves problems at times.
"It's a tough one to take in the end.
"We still played a good first half. We were on top and created some good chances. There was a good chance at 2-0, a scuffle on the line. If that goes in it's a big moment.
"The second goal obviously is a mistake. The third we'll be disappointed with. That's when the game went away from us.
"It's [the second leg] still a few weeks away. We have to move on quickly. We have Premier League games before then so we have to concentrate on that, and cross this bridge when we come to it."