Liverpool's Jamie Carragher shrugged off the prospect of no European football for the first time in 12 years by insisting it gave the club a chance of qualifying for the Champions League.
Successive defeats in their final two matches - against direct rivals Tottenham and then Aston Villa yesterday - put paid to any hopes of fifth place and a Europa League slot.
And while up until the final kick at Villa Park everyone at Anfield would have stressed European competition was important Carragher admits it will be no great loss.
'No disrespect to the Europa League but the way that competition has gone it's not a massive disappointment,' he said.
'The main thing for us next season is getting back into the Champions League.
'Not being in Europe will give us a better chance of doing that. We want to get back in the top four and do well in the cups.
'Playing Thursdays and Sundays isn't ideal so there's a flip side to not being involved.'
A sixth-placed finish would not usually be acceptable at Anfield but, because of their woeful start to the season under Roy Hodgson when they lost nine of 20 Premier League matches, Carragher accepted on this occasion it represented some success.
