Jurgen Klopp has reiterated he is “100 per cent committed” to Liverpool and dismissed comparisons to his previous jobs as he tries to turn around a dismal season.
The Reds have been knocked out of both domestic cups and sit 10th in the Premier League ahead of Monday’s Merseyside derby against Everton at Anfield.
Klopp’s men were beaten 3-0 by Wolves last time out and questions have been asked about his future, but the German does not want to go anywhere and is determined to solve the problems himself.
“I will not and I cannot go,” he told reporters. “I have too much responsibility and I want to sort it… if people believe in me then we have to go through this together because then when we come out [of it], we will have great times again.
“Maybe the difficult times are a bit too long already, for me as well… but I don’t think about these kind of things. I am here, 100 per cent committed.”
The 55-year-old has cut a frustrated figure in recent weeks, having seen his team win just one of their last seven games (D2 L4), and he attempted to explain why he was particularly irksome following the Wolves defeat.
“How I said before, if we win, I feel like I was part of it. If we lose, I feel 100 per cent responsible and I was always in my life like this, and you can imagine how big the responsibility l am feeling at this moment is,” he said.
“We will do absolutely everything to get through this and prepare the very positive future again, but I cannot change that we lost the last game the way we lost it.
“There is one moment I am really emotional and that is immediately after the game and you face me then, but apart from that I am completely clear and can do the job I always did, I am experienced enough to know that you can get through this.”
Comparisons have been made to Klopp’s time at his two previous clubs, Mainz and Borussia Dortmund, with the German spending seven years at each before moving on.
Currently in his seventh full season at Liverpool, it has been theorised that Klopp is enduring a similar trajectory, but he rejected that notion, saying he did not leave Mainz for the same reasons he left Dortmund, and adding the situation at Liverpool is completely different again.
“When I left Mainz it was a career step,” he said. “When I left Dortmund I was really exhausted in that moment, it was a lot and I thought we have to change something, it was time to do something else, [but] neither-nor in this moment, neither-nor. I am completely here.
“I understand that people think: ‘look at that, seven years, seven years,’ it’s nothing to do with it. The situation is difficult for different reasons, but this is not one of them.”
Liverpool wanted a fresh start in 2023 but Andrew Robertson says the Reds have been “nowhere near good enough” this season and played “worse” since the World Cup.
The Scotland international captained Jurgen Klopp’s side at Brighton and Hove Albion as Kauro Mitoma’s last-minute strike dumped the FA Cup holders out in the fourth round.
Liverpool had taken the lead through Harvey Elliot before Lewis Dunk’s fortuitous first-half equaliser paved the way for Mitoma’s deserved late winner in Sunday’s 2-1 triumph.
Klopp’s men are out of both domestic cups and sit only ninth in the Premier League, having won just eight of their opening 19 top-flight games.
Having lost nine times already in 31 outings across all competitions this campaign, Robertson bemoaned Liverpool’s abject performances that have continued after the World Cup break.
“This season has been nowhere near good enough,” Robertson told ITV Sport.
“At the start of the year, we wanted a fresh start, but that hasn’t happened – we’ve been worse. In the league, we haven’t been good enough and now we’re out of both cups.”
The Reds’ downfall may have appeared somewhat of a surprise after falling narrowly short of an unprecedented quadruple last term.
Liverpool missed out in the Champions League final to Real Madrid and saw Manchester City secure the Premier League title on the last day of the season, though they lifted the FA Cup and EFL Cup.
Sadio Mane’s sale to Bayern Munich and Roberto Firmino’s diminishing role should be factored in, while Mohamed Salah has failed to hit his usual lofty heights after scoring just nine goals in 19 league games.
Luis Diaz has been out injured after a promising first campaign at Anfield and signings Darwin Nunez and Cody Gapko are still settling in, yet Robertson struggled to explain why Liverpool continue to falter.
The left-back added: “It’s really disappointing. You can’t put your finger on one thing that’s gone wrong. It’s more than that. It’s about trying to put a performance together where all these things click and that’s proving difficult right now.
“You can tell we’re not as confident in front of goal, and defensively we’re still a wee bit open in certain areas.
“We were on the back of two clean sheets, which was positive, but today, two disappointing goals and they had a couple of big chances as well.
“We need to try and get the confidence back. It’s easier said than done but that’s the only way we can pick up results. You have to be able to score goals and you have to be able to keep clean sheets.
“We’re not managing that just now and we need to do it. We keep saying that and it doesn’t help the fans. I feel sorry for them, the way we’re putting on a show for them just now.
“We let them down again and we’re obviously disappointed to be falling out of the cup.”
Liverpool‘s teenager midfielder Stefan Bajcetic has signed a new long-term contract with the club.
The 18-year-old arrived from Celta Vigo in late 2020 and has worked his way through to the first-team picture at Anfield.
Having trained with the senior team ahead of the 2022-23 season, Bajcetic has 10 appearances to his name this term.
His breakthrough performances have seen him earn a fresh deal with Jurgen Klopp’s men, and Bajcetic acknowledges he is enjoying a campaign that has outperformed his expectations.
“It’s crazy [how quickly things have happened],” he told the club’s official website. “A year ago I was playing Under-18s football, and now I’ve started some games [and] made my debut.
“[I have] even scored a goal. That was something I never expected to happen this year. It’s amazing to see how fast it went.
Bajcetic made his senior debut in late August during the Reds’ 9-0 rout over Bournemouth in the Premier League.
He has gone on to make several more appearances in the top flight for Liverpool, while he was also a goalscorer in their Boxing Day win over Aston Villa.
His renewal marks the latest piece of business for Klopp’s side, who signed Cody Gakpo from PSV in their only major transfer of the mid-season window.
Liverpool will be in FA Cup action this weekend with a fourth-round trip to Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday.
Jurgen Klopp claims that one of the main factors in his decision to extend his contract last year was the opportunity to oversee a “required” renovation at Liverpool.
With the Reds, with whom he has won seven titles, including the Premier League and Champions League, Klopp pledged his future until 2026 when he signed a new contract in April.
After coming dangerously close to capturing an unheard-of quadruple last season, Liverpool has underperformed this year, finishing ninth in the Premier League and 10 points below the top four.
Many observers have stated that the Liverpool Reds’ team needs to be rejuvenated as a result of Liverpool mainstays like Jordan Henderson and Fabinho underperforming this season, and Klopp agrees.
“I’m not saying it’s the biggest challenge, but it’s a challenge, and it was one of the main reasons why I signed a new contract, because I knew it was necessary [to rebuild],” Klopp said during an appearance on BT Sport’s Football People podcast.
“It will not go overnight, and imagine the situation now with another coach in the chair. I would be somewhere on holiday and everybody would shout my name, ‘with him it would not have happened!’
“I’m obviously not a miracle worker. That’s why it’s good how it is, because of all the problems you have in a transitional period – we have an awful lot of injuries and that makes life really complicated.
“I have no problem with that because obviously I know the majority of the outside world are just interested in the short term, but we have to be long-term focused as well.”
Jürgen Klopp felt we demonstrated ‘a little step’ forward in terms of our performance levels following the goalless draw with Chelsea ⤵️
Liverpool are not the only giant marooned in mid-table this season, with Chelsea below them on goal difference after the sides played out a dismal goalless draw on Saturday.
While Chelsea have spent big to attract Mykhaylo Mudryk and Benoit Badiashile in the current transfer window, Klopp insists Liverpool cannot afford to conduct business in the same way.
“There are obviously plenty of different ways you can do it, but it’s all based on the situation you are in,” he said.
“Chelsea with the new ownership obviously… nobody knows exactly how they do it, how they can spend this much money.
“Nobody likes me talking about other teams, but transition needs time if you don’t have endless money, otherwise you can change it overnight pretty much, by bringing in 10 players.”
While Klopp will have spent 11 years at Anfield if he sees out the remainder of his contract, he does not believe he will stay in the game as long as some other coaches have.
“I know I dream of football, so that’s not cool… the job is incredibly demanding, it is, but it’s great as well,” Klopp added.
“When Roy Hodgson came back again [to Watford last season], I saw him and asked him, ‘do you have a wet flat? You go again?’ He says, ‘no, I love it’.
“I cannot see myself beyond 70 and still standing in the dugout in every weather, and especially each weather for training, two hours standing there in the wind. I can’t see that.
“I hope other things are that interesting to me that I am really fine with not being involved anymore.”
When Liverpool plays Chelsea on Saturday, Jurgen Klopp will have managed 1,000 games as a head coach and manager. It’s been quite the journey.
Klopp has accomplished more than anyone anticipated of a man whose playing career was clearly humble, from a relegation struggle with Mainz in the German second division to the heights of Champions League triumph with Liverpool.
Although it would be a stretch to say the indications were present from day one, they were unquestionably present by day two.
One day later, Klopp made his debut as a coach in the second tier of the Bundesliga. He had been a player in the team until that point, but this marked the beginning of a new chapter.
Club president Harald Strutz, quoted in the Rheinische Post at the time, voiced the suggestion the interim boss could stake a claim for the full-time job.
“Maybe that will be a permanent solution,” Strutz said, presciently.
Midfielder Christof Babatz, who would be a significant figure in Mainz’s rise to the Bundesliga under Klopp, then said after the first game resulted in a 1-0 win over Duisburg: “The coach teased that certain something out of us.”
And so began the story of Klopp’s touchline career, one centred on teasing out the very best from the talent at his disposal, nurturing prospects into polished performers, and tallying trophies along the way. From Mainz, to Borussia Dortmund, and eventually to Liverpool, Klopp has delivered on that initial leap of faith.
There have been league titles, cup triumphs and big European final nights with Liverpool and Dortmund, plus promotion and even a relegation during his formative Mainz days.
Here, Stats Perform looks at those first 999 games, as Opta data shows some essential numbers behind one of the 21st century’s great coaching careers.
Pep, Howe, Hecking and Magath – Klopp’s rivalries
Klopp has faced Pep Guardiola more than any other rival manager, going head-to-head with the Catalan 27 times across their careers.
There have been notable defeats along the way, including the 2014 DFB-Pokal final, when Klopp’s Dortmund went down 2-0 to Guardiola’s Bayern, and the 5-0 and 4-0 thrashings meted out by Manchester City to Liverpool in September 2017 and July 2020, both of which rank among the top nine heaviest defeats Klopp has had to stomach.
However, Klopp has the overall upper hand across their meetings, winning 11, drawing seven and losing nine of those games.
He has faced only one other boss more than 20 times: German Dieter Hecking, against whom Klopp pitted his wits 21 times, winning 11, drawing five and losing five. Hecking bossed Lubeck, Alemannia Aachen, Hannover, Nurnberg and Wolfsburg during Klopp’s time in the German leagues.
Klopp certainly has a happy record against Newcastle United’s former Bournemouth boss Eddie Howe, achieving 11 wins from their 13 meetings.
This shows the most wins Klopp has had against any boss is 11, against Guardiola, Hecking and Howe, while it can be revealed the team he has beaten the most are Freiburg (13 times), followed by Crystal Palace, Nurnberg and Arsenal (all 12).
His real nemesis appears to have been Felix Magath, the former Stuttgart, Bayern, Wolfsburg and Schalke coach. In 14 games against Magath teams, Klopp won only three times, losing eight.
Bayern have had the most wins against Klopp, with 16. No other team have reached double figures, with Hamburg, Schalke and Wolfsburg (all nine) next on the list.
The milestones, the biggest and the best… and the games he’d rather forget
Klopp won that first match of his career against Duisburg, and to date he has never lost on each 100th game on his way towards 1,000 as a boss.
There have been wins against the way against Bochum (200th game), Werder Bremen (300th), his old club Mainz (400th), Freiburg (500th) and Southampton (600th), and draws on his 700th, 800th and 900th games, against Newcastle, Chelsea and Real Madrid, respectively. Klopp’s 100th game was also a draw, against Unterhaching with Mainz.
His biggest win was the 9-0 trouncing that Liverpool dished out to Bournemouth in August of this season, and his Liverpool team have also hit seven in a game five times (Maribor, Spartak Moscow, Crystal Palace, Lincoln City and Rangers), while his biggest win as a boss in Germany was Dortmund’s 6-0 crushing of Arminia Bielefeld in May 2009.
Klopp has suffered four defeats by five-goal margins, the worst he has had to endure, with Aston Villa inflicting two of those: 7-2 in October 2020 and 5-0 in December 2019 – albeit the latter with Klopp and his frontline Liverpool stars out of the country on Club World Cup duty. There was also a 6-1 torching for Mainz at the hands of Werder Bremen in October 2006, and Liverpool’s 5-0 whipping by Guardiola’s City.
When it comes to promoting young talent, Klopp has rarely hesitated. His youngest player was Harvey Elliott, now a first-team squad regular at Liverpool, who faced MK Dons in the EFL Cup at the age of 16 years and 174 days in September 2019.
Klopp has fielded five 16-year-olds for Liverpool, plus seven 17-year-olds, while he also gave chances to the 17-year-old Mario Gotze at Dortmund, and Mario Vrancic, also 17, during his time at Mainz. Gotze went on to become a World Cup final match-winner.
His oldest player was Peter Neustadter, a Kazakh defender who was older than Klopp himself, aged 37 years and 176 days, when he turned out for Mainz against Alemannia Aachen in the Bundesliga’s second tier in August 2003.
Warhorse midfielder James Milner could yet break that record as the oldest Liverpool player to have appeared for Klopp, aged 37 years and 13 days when he played in the recent FA Cup replay win against Wolves this week.
James Woodburn remains the youngest scorer for Klopp after hitting the net against Leeds in an EFL Cup clash in November 2016 at the age of 17 years and 45 days, while Sebastian Kehl ranks as his oldest scorer – 35 years and 53 days old when he bagged for Dortmund against Hoffenheim in a DFB-Pokal quarter-final in April 2015.
As a significantly altered team defeated Wolves 1-0 in a replay of the FA Cup third round at Molineux, Jurgen Klopp praised the return of the “passion” Liverpool had been missing.
Following an unexpected 3-0 Premier League loss at Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday, Reds manager Klopp made eight changes to his starting lineup.
One of the newcomers was Harvey Elliott, who ended up becoming the match-winner by scoring the lone goal with a breath-taking long-range shot in the 13th minute.
The holders will have the chance to take revenge on Brighton in a fourth-round meeting at the Amex Stadium with their first victory in four games.
It was anything but a classic all-Premier League tie after a 2-2 draw at Anfield ensured the two sides had to do battle again, but Klopp was not concerned about entertainment value.
He told BBC Sport: “It feels like ages ago we had a feeling of winning and playing well. We had to fight hard at the end, which we controlled for long periods. It is great and the reaction we wanted to see.”
Klopp vowed he would not quit after the defeat to Brighton and urged his players to go “back to basics”.
The German was impressed with the way they responded to a painful loss last weekend.
“From the passion we showed, yes,” he said. “It is my job to help the boys and find the formation where they feel good from the start.
“Stefan Bajcetic and the whole midfield was really compact, so it was difficult for Wolves to find the key players like Joao Moutinho. I liked the game a lot.”
Elliott was named man of the match, but Klopp felt several of his players were candidates for the award.
He added: “It was good from Harvey Elliott, especially after an early knock to the ankle. He fought through, and the goal was exceptional.
“I had a few man of the match performances today. We played a really good first half, had good periods in the second, and in the end it was just passion to block the shots. A cup game, great.”
According to Jurgen Klopp, he is not “too loyal” to his players and will only quit Liverpool if necessary.
The Reds’ season has been underwhelming thus far, which was made worse by recent sloppy Premier League losses against Brentford and Brighton & Hove Albion.
Despite claims that there has been insufficient replenishing of a team that has been one of the most successful in Europe in recent seasons, Liverpool has a number of key players who have been with the club for most of Klopp’s seven years on Merseyside.
“I heard I’m too loyal, but I am not too loyal. The problem is too complex. If you can then go out and bring in another player to replace him, then it makes sense,” manager Klopp said at a press conference. “But if you cannot bring anyone in, you cannot take anyone out.
“I am not too loyal. At [Borussia] Dortmund, it was clear when I left [in 2015], I said ‘something has to change here’. It is a different situation.
“Either the manager’s position changes or a lot of other things change. So, as far as I am concerned unless someone tells me, I will not go.
“I will be here for as long as I am wanted. If no one tells me to go, I will not go. So that means maybe there is a point where we have to change other stuff. We will see that, but that is something for the future. Like summer or whatever. Not now.
“I have space and time to think about it, we have to play better football now.”
Tuesday’s FA Cup third-round replay between Liverpool and Wolves at Molineux is a crucial matchup for Klopp’s club, which won the cup the previous year.
Klopp acknowledged that although it is doubtful Liverpool would make another move in the January transfer window after acquiring Dutch forward Cody Gakpo from PSV, it is not for lack of ambition.
The club’s supporters have been clamoring to recruit another midfielder, as Thiago Alcantara is the only one who has been signed on a permanent basis since 2018.
“We look outside as well,” Klopp said. “It’s not that we are stubborn and think that’s it, we’ll go with these boys until 2050 or whatever. That’s not how we see it, it’s all about what we can do and these kind of things – and what you want to do. More important is what you can do. It’s always the same, each year.
“I cannot change my answers – if the solutions are out there for us, available and doable, of course we would bring in players to help. But we have an existing squad as well and we are underperforming, definitely, I know that. But I cannot sit here and blame everyone else, the players, all the time. It is my responsibility.
“We have limited options, but we have players with contracts here, they are not available. But if we bring in players, we cannot bring them all in the Premier League and Champions League list.”
Eight months after Liverpool came dangerously close to a historically rare quadruple, Reds manager Jurgen Klopp is fighting to prevent his team’s problematic season from collapsing.
After suffering a humiliating 3-0 loss at Brighton on Saturday, Klopp’s team is now languishing in ninth place in the Premier League, which has caused some soul-searching at Anfield.
In advance of Tuesday’s FA Cup third-round rematch between Liverpool and Wolves, AFP Sport examines the causes of the slump.
Liverpool’s quest for four titles last season came to a disappointing end as Real Madrid won the Champions League final and Manchester City won the Premier League crown.
And this season, Liverpool is still paying for that historic bid, which helped the club win the FA and League Cup finals.
Following a 63-game season in which the Reds played every possible match in all four competitions, Klopp acknowledged on Friday that Liverpool had displayed signs of being mentally and physically fatigued.
“It must have (had an effect). We can say that now,” Klopp said when asked about Liverpool’s fatigue.
“There was no book written about it, there was no data about it, because nobody played that many games before.”
The most visible sign of the debilitating effect of Liverpool’s marathon season has been in the Anfield treatment room – crammed with injured stars throughout this term.
Klopp’s forward line for the match at Brighton was missing a host of stars with Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota, Darwin Nunez and Roberto Firmino all absent, while centre-back Virgil van Dijk was also sidelined.
AGEING MIDFIELD
Klopp’s desire for a frenetic game-plan based on relentlessly pressing Liverpool’s opponents into submission is best suited to a midfield packed with energetic workaholics.
For most of his reign at Liverpool that is exactly what he got from Jordan Henderson, Fabinho and James Milner as his “heavy metal” philosophy delivered Premier League and Champions League glory.
Now, however, Liverpool are beginning to pay the price for failing to freshen up a midfield that is showing its age.
Henderson (32), Milner (37), Thiago Alcantara (31) and Fabinho (29) are unable to consistently carry out Klopp’s demands, while the younger Naby Keita and Curtis Jones have been sidelined by injuries.
“It’s a real low point for us as a team,” Liverpool captain Henderson said. “We are low on confidence. You can see that when we’re playing, the energy levels are low. We need to stay together.”
Sadio Mane’s value to Liverpool was never in doubt but it is still surprising how much the Senegal star has been missed since joining Bayern Munich last year.
With Mane roaming across Liverpool’s front line there was more than one dangerman for opponents to focus on, allowing acres of space for Mohamed Salah to exploit.
Mane’s lethal finishing, creativity and work-rate made him indispensable and Klopp has yet to replace his output despite bringing in Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo in the past 12 months.
Netherlands forward Gakpo arrived from PSV Eindhoven earlier this month despite interest from Manchester United after shining at the World Cup.
The 23-year-old is without a goal in his first two appearances, but Klopp will hope he can fill Mane’s boots in time.
TROUBLE AT THE TOP
Klopp has been coy when asked about the impact of the Fenway Sports Group’s decision to put Liverpool up for sale in November, but there is no doubt the potential for a boardroom change has created uncertainty at Anfield.
Although US-based FSG sanctioned Klopp’s £40-million move for Gakpo, it was notable that the German has quietly grumbled about Liverpool’s transfer investment compared with their main Premier League rivals.
Klopp reportedly wanted Aurelien Tchouameni in the close season but the France midfielder went to Real Madrid instead, while Borussia Dortmund’s England star Jude Bellingham is understood to be another top target.
The Brazilian was responsible for Wolves’ first goal because he let Goncalo Guedes an easy finish with a direct ball and also let Hwang Hee-chan score a facile second.
Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez both scored to keep the holders from suffering a shocking third-round elimination, but their combined efforts fell short of averting a rematch at Molineux.
However, in his postgame remarks, Klopp did not place the blame for their issues on his goalie, instead complimenting the contributions Wolves made in an exciting game that lasted the entire time at Anfield.
“The goal should not happen, but we all know how often Ali saves our backsides,” he told ITV Sport. “They had counter-attacks before then [too].
“It is always dangerous when [Adama] Traore gets the ball, we could see that. We came back with a fantastic equaliser. They got a foot in the game, and they caused us massive problems.”
When Toti Gomes’ goal was controversially disallowed by the linesman’s flag, Liverpool came the closest to losing when VAR was unable to provide enough angles to determine if Gomes was onside.
Julen Lopetegui was incensed by the choice, and Klopp agreed that it was not a good position for either team.
“I’m not sure about their third goal,” he added. “We have one picture where it may look offside.
“I can understand why they are angry about it. We don’t want the VAR to just have one angle.”
Cody Gakpo enjoyed a solid debut following his arrival from PSV, and Klopp was warm in his praise for the Dutchman.
“He fitted into the game,” he added. “It was not easy for a first step. We cannot expect it to be perfect.
“He showed good signs. We have to get him in better positions, but that will come, no doubt.”
The addition of a new forward may be just what Liverpool needs to turn the season around in the second half.
The Reds had a sluggish start to the season and are currently sixth in the Premier League, four points behind fifth-place Manchester United and seven points behind fourth-place Tottenham.
Jurgen Klopp will hope to bring in attacking reinforcements in order to breathe new life into his side, who seem to have regressed after a strong 2021-22.
Ahead of the Merseysiders’ clash with Aston Villa on Boxing Day, we take a look at some of their possible transfer targets.
Current options
Liverpool’s preferred front three so far this season has seen Roberto Firmino play through the middle flanked by Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz.
Darwin Nunez, the big-money summer signing, has missed games through injury and suspension but he will be expected to kick on.
Klopp has lost Diaz to injury, however, and did not hide his disappointment at being without the Colombian.
He said: “It is clear it is a big disappointment for all of us, for [Diaz] as well. It was a non-situation in training, honestly. Nothing [and then he] felt something.
“[He] did not feel a lot [the] next day but we wanted to be really cautious and said: ‘OK, come on, let us have a look.’
“Then the news came and it was a proper smash in the face. But that is it now.”
Balancing the budget
Realistically, Liverpool will need to bring in another attacker in January if they are serious about securing a place in next season’s Champions League — but there are other areas of the pitch that also need improvement.
Reports suggest the Reds are focused on strengthening their midfield — which will be a costly endeavour.
Two names frequently mentioned as serious targets are Jude Bellingham of Borussia Dortmund and Enzo Fernandez of Benfica, who both starred at the World Cup.
That could mean Liverpool will have limited funds as they seek to strengthen in the final third.
Enzo Fernandez covers the middle of the pitch for Benfica
Marcus Thuram
Marcus Thuram — son of legendary full-back Lillian — is Borussia Monchengladbach’s star centre forward.
The 25-year-old Frenchman could be a low-cost option given he is in the final year of his contract.
Thuram came through the youth system at Sochaux before a two-year spell with Guingamp. He then joined Monchengladbach in the summer of 2019.
The nine-cap international has been in fine form in the Bundesliga, contributing 10 goals and three assists in 15 games.
That — coupled with an impressive showing in Qatar that saw him deliver two assists — could prompt Anfield chiefs to make a January move.
Marcus Thuram is in fine goalscoring form for Borussia Monchengladbach
Jhon Duran
Colombian forward Jhon Duran, 19, could be a bold choice.
The teenager is able to play out wide as well as through the middle and plies his trade in MLS with Chicago Fire, having joined them in 2022 from Colombian side Envigado.
Since then, Duran has gone on to make his senior debut for the Colombia national team — earning three caps to date — and has developed into one of the most promising talents in South America.
He contributed eight goals and five assists in 27 MLS games this year.
Joao Felix
Joao Felix could operate as a false nine under Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool
Joao Felix is the biggest name linked with Liverpool this January transfer window.
But he would not come cheap. The 23-year-old Portuguese ace has failed to settle at Atletico Madrid since joining from Benfica in July 2019 and it is accepted that the time has come for him to move on.
A dynamic forward, Felix has never quite convinced pragmatic coach Diego Simeone but his performances for his country during the World Cup have reminded many of his talent.
The big question, however, is whether Liverpool have the financial capacity to sanction a move for Felix alongside their plans for a midfield revamp next summer.
For Liverpool’s upcoming match against Manchester City, Jurgen Klopphas hinted that he won’t be considering using Virgil van Dijk.
Following the Netherlands’ World Cup defeat against Argentina last Friday, Van Dijk resumed training with Liverpool in Dubai this week.
The 31-year-old participated fully in all five of his nation’s games in Qatar, including extra time in the quarterfinal defeat to Argentina. He clocked 480 minutes of action in total.
While Klopp does not want to hasten Van Dijk’s recovery, he has not yet decided whether to start Trent Alexander-Arnold and Jordan Henderson, two English players.
Henderson did not finish any of the three England matches he started, while Alexander-Arnold managed just 33 minutes on the field across the Three Lions’ five matches.
“Yes, there’s a chance, of course – they’re training already,” Klopp told Liverpool’s official website when asked if any returning World Cup players would be in action against City.
“Hendo is already training here. Virgil is training here, but I don’t think we will try that. Hendo we will see, Trent we will see.
“But this group worked now together for nearly two weeks and we made a real step and that’s cool. I don’t know in this moment.
“I hope we all get through it and we all know in England, and in Europe in general, there’s kind of a virus going around, so we hope we can stay out of that.
“Then we’ll make the decision obviously on Wednesday who can play on Thursday. But it’s good and will be a very interesting game after that period, but I’m looking forward to it.”
Liverpool defeated Milan 4-1 in their second mid-season friendly on Friday, with Darwin Nunez – who suffered early World Cup heartbreak with Uruguay – scoring twice.
Mohamed Salah and Thiago Alcantara were also on target for Liverpool in the United Arab Emirates, where Klopp used 22 different players, including a number of youngsters.
“In general, tonight was the result of the last 10 days what we saw in training and tonight we could bring it on the pitch, which is obviously nice,” Klopp said.
“I’m not sure the academy [players] could watch the game tonight but when you see these boys and performing in a game like this, it’s cool.
“It’s a real physical game, adult football is a physical game and the boys need to make these steps so they can get ready for it step by step.
“The physical part will come but until you are that strong, you can create a lot of ideas, you can do things a bit smarter.
“There was a lot of really good things tonight and that’s why we play football. We want to see good football games.”
Liverpool’s trip to the Etihad Stadium is followed four days later by a visit to Aston Villa on their return to Premier League action, before hosting Leicester City on December 30.
Jurgen Klopp has announced that Liverpool winger Luis Diaz will undergo testing after encountering a setback in his effort to recover from a knee injury.
Diaz has been sidelined ever since the injury he suffered in Liverpool’s 3-2 loss to Premier League champions Arsenal in October, but he was recently added to their team for a training camp in Dubai.
The Colombian winger, who has made 12 appearances for Liverpool this season and has contributed two assists and four goals, wasn’t initially anticipated to take part fully in team practice before to the start of the Premier League later this month.
However, according to a statement issued by Liverpool on Friday, Diaz had to skip two training sessions and will also be absent for the Reds’ friendly match against Lyon on Sunday.
The 25-year-old Diaz would reportedly return to England after feeling pain in the same knee, and the club stated that Diaz’s ailment would need additional evaluation.
“It’s all good with the boys who are here,” manager Jurgen Klopp said. “What’s not good is we have to see with Lucho.
“He felt something and we need to have further assessment there, but apart from that they all look really, really good.”
Before returning to competitive play on December 22 against Manchester City in the EFL Cup last-16, Liverpool will play friendlies against Lyon and Milan.
Prior to their next match in the top flight against Aston Villa on December 26, the Reds are now sixth in the Premier League, seven points outside of the Champions League spots.
Jürgen Klopp has confirmed Luis Diaz is to undergo further assessment on an issue sustained in training during Liverpool’s Dubai camp.
Jurgen Klopp acknowledges Liverpool cannot afford to “be picky” after a slow start in the Premier League, meaning they are ready to fight again against a Tottenham side he never relishes facing.
Liverpool head into the weekend in ninth place, 15 points behind leaders Arsenal, 13 shy of champions Manchester City and 10 off opponents Spurs, who are third.
The Reds have lost their past two league matches to Nottingham Forest and Leeds United, both of whom were in the bottom three heading into those games.
For that reason, Klopp cannot write off a meeting with “a confident, strong opponent” at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday.
“It’s a big game for us, a massive game for us – difficult as well, Spurs away,” he said.
“I didn’t count the points distance between us and them, but we cannot be picky with opponents and games where we want to get points. We have to go for it, definitely, but it’s difficult.”
Klopp is aware of the scrutinyaround his every word while Liverpool are struggling, but he insists there is no alternative to talking up the “fighting” mood required to rescue their season.
That attitude will be needed again in a fixture of which Klopp has never been “1,000 per cent convinced”, even if Tottenham are winless in nine in the league against Liverpool going back to 2017.
A positive, the manager accepted, is the way Liverpool have risen to the challenge of facing elite opposition this season, advancing in the Champions League and beating Napoli in midweek.
On hand to tap home after @VirgilvDijk‘s powerful header 😅
“To explain wins is really easy, because nobody listens really,” the manager said. “Everybody is in a great mood, you’re just smiling and ‘it’s in good shape’.
“When you lose, it’s much more difficult; now, each word is really important. But I don’t have five million different words for it.
“If you want to get out of something, you first have to get through it. That’s where we are.
“It might take time, but it’s not that we say now Tottenham is too early for us to really show up already. No, it’s not; we go there and want to be at our best, 100 per cent.
“But sitting here now, being 1,000 per cent convinced ‘yes, we will’? What I can tell you: it never was [easy] before going to Tottenham. I never thought ‘good moment to face Tottenham; let’s smash them’. That was never the case.
“It’s a difficult place to go, a really good team, extremely well coached, and a real fighting unit. There are no friendly games against them. Antonio’s on his toes on the sidelines, the players are in challenges, all these kinds of things, so it will be a tough one.
“But that’s actually what we all want; it’s like a Champions League game in the Premier League. That’s how we will approach it.
“I can imagine in a phase like this it takes a bit longer [talking about defeats]. ‘Always the same: fighting, doing this, oh, again’ – these kinds of things.
“Sorry. Without fighting, we shouldn’t even try. Yes, we have to fight through this; that’s the case, that’s how it is.
“You cannot play through it, you cannot say now to forget the defending stuff, ‘let’s just circle around them, pass the ball through them, nutmegs here, backheels there’. That’s not how it works. That’s why we’re in the mood we are. It’s absolutely okay.
“It’s rather good that in between… you lose against Leeds, and I couldn’t have felt worse, no chance, but then you play a good game against a team in form, and it gives you a lift. That’s normal. Here we go.
“Now, we play against Tottenham and try to feel like we did after the Napoli game.”
Jurgen Klopp does not know how the protocol around concussions in football can be improved, but he is sure temporary substitutions are not the answer.
The issue of head injuries has come to prominence again in the past week, most notably after Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez initially played on in the 4-0 defeat to Newcastle United having collided with Tyrone Mings’ knee.
Liverpool themselves had to use a concussion substitute – a sixth permanent change, which also grants the opposition another switch – in the Champions League win over Napoli in midweek.
James Milner went down early in the second half, having previously thought, like Martinez, he would be able to continue.
The idea of a temporary substitution, giving medical professionals further time to assess potential concussions, has been floated as a possible solution.
But Klopp, speaking in his news conference on Friday, pointed out the signs of some injuries can be delayed so long players would still be allowed to return to the pitch with a concussion.
“What else shall we do? I know you say ‘temporary subs’; I am fine with the concussion sub, absolutely fine,” he said before Sunday’s match against Tottenham.
“Take him off and bring another player – it means you can still change five times after that, and the other team has an extra sub. I think that’s the best we can do.
“You say it takes quite a while between getting the concussion and it really kicking in; I’m not sure then 15 minutes is really the time to wait for it.
“People will tell you after an hour it kicks in. I think how we do it is the right way.
“And it doesn’t happen that often, to be 100 per cent honest. I can’t remember one before [at Liverpool]. It was the first time with the way Milly got hit, but when did we have a concussion before? I can’t remember it.
“We can talk about it like it happens all the time and the boys are constantly in danger. They are not. They are well-trained athletes and it doesn’t happen that often.
“But if it happens, we have a solution for it, which is much better than ever before in football’s history.
“Is there space for improvement? Probably, but I don’t know how.”
Milner will not play against Spurs but can return to non-contact training on Monday and a full session on Tuesday “if everything goes well”.
Liverpool are at least boosted by Jordan Henderson’s recovery from injury and Fabinho’s return to form against Napoli.
“The game was a clear sign of Fabinho how we know him,” Klopp said of his struggling star. “It was a good game and we defended in all positions on a different level to the week before. It felt good.
“For him, it was very important to realise that that’s possible. It was a good start in the right direction.”
Jurgen Klopp believes it is unfair to expect players to engage in political protests at the upcoming World Cup in Qatar.
The decision to host the tournament in Qatar – where male homosexuality is illegal – has long been criticised due to concerns about the country’s human rights record.
England’s Harry Kane will be among eight European captains to wear a distinctive heart-adorned armband at the tournament, in order to raise awareness of the OneLove campaign against discrimination.
Meanwhile, tennis great Billie Jean King has called on players to act as “influencers” in Qatar, but Klopp believes handing down that level of responsibility is unjust.
“I understand 100 per cent that we talk about it,” Liverpool manager Klopp told Sky News after receiving the Freedom of the City on Wednesday.
“But it’s not fair to talk now to the players and give responsibility to them, because it’s more than 10 years ago that other people decided [to host the World Cup in Qatar], and we all accepted the decision.
“I watched documentaries recently about the election of Russia [in 2018] and Qatar, so it’s not about this generation of players to say now that ‘we don’t go’ or ‘we don’t do that’.
We are uniting with nine other European countries in support of OneLove, a campaign that will use the power of football to promote inclusion and send a message against discrimination.
“These are the players. The tournament is in Qatar. The players go there and play the game.
“The decision was made by other people and if you want to criticise anybody, then criticise the people who made the decision. Not the sport, not the competition and for sure, not the players.
“It’s not fair that we expect from them that they go there and make big political statements or whatever. It’s just not fair.”
Klopp did offer his support when asked about the OneLove campaign, but reiterated his belief players should not be expected to protest the initial decision to stage the tournament in Qatar.
He said: “That’s absolutely fine, but what I don’t like is that we expect them [the players] to do something. They go there to play football. The big tournament was organised and planned by other people.”
Last week, Australia’s players launched a campaign to highlight World Cup host Qatar’s human rights record.
Luciano Spalletti says Napoli will “not be fooled” by Liverpool’s recent struggles, nor by Jurgen Klopp suggesting the Reds cannot record an emphatic victory to top their Champions League group.
Klopp’s side must defeat Napoli by four goals at Anfield on Tuesday to win Group A, having been thrashed 4-1 by Napoli on matchday one in the reverse fixture before recovering with four successive wins.
While Liverpool progressed to the knockout stages with a game to spare, the Reds have struggled in the Premier League this season, sitting ninth in the table – some 15 points behind leaders Arsenal.
Klopp heralded the potential of Napoli on Monday, suggesting a four-goal victory would be near-impossible as he backed the Serie A side to reach the final, though Spalletti took the praise with a pinch of salt.
“I think I’ve read that he said they don’t think about winning 4-0 … I think he said it seriously,” the Napoli coach said in a jovial manner.
“If he said it seriously that he can’t win 4-0 if he wants to, let’s talk about it! Excessive compliments sometimes serve to lift you up and then smash you down.
“[Klopp] made the last two Champions League finals, so he is better than everyone, he and his team. We accept compliments if they are sincere, but compliments do not make results and standings.
“We know the game will be very hard. We will have to be the same as always, as in the first leg, and it is almost impossible to repeat that match.
“To finish first or second, everything changes, it seems stupid to answer whether we want to win or not – we came here with the best intentions possible.
“Then there is a stage like Anfield, against those players there, and we will have to prove that we are up to it.”
Jurgen Klopp has “no idea” how good Darwin Nunez could become but believes the Liverpool forward’s output so far has been “incredible” considering the “knock” of his early suspension.
Nunez was Liverpool’s big-money pre-season signing, arriving from Benfica for a fee that could reportedly reach £85million (€100m).
The 23-year-old enjoyed a flying start to life in England, scoring from the bench against both Manchester City and Fulham, but his first appearance in the starting XI was cut short by a red card against Crystal Palace that prompted a three-match ban.
As a result, Nunez has still only played 636 minutes for Liverpool in late October, although he has been in the thick of the action when he has been on the pitch.
The Uruguay forward has six goals and an assist, and he might have added more; he is averaging 6.4 shots per 90 in open play, almost double second-placed Liverpool star Mohamed Salah’s 3.3.
Including chances created and contributions to build-up play, Nunez has been involved in 8.1 attacking sequences per 90 in open play – another leading mark among Liverpool players.
Liverpool in 2022-23 🔴
Players with most attacking open play sequence involvements (taking a shot, creating a shot or being involved in the build up to a shot). pic.twitter.com/YJBaLy3TOp
He has marginally underperformed his 6.4 expected goals, even if his expected goals on target value – calculated from the quality of the attempt rather than the quality of the chance – of 6.6 suggests his finishing has not largely been at fault.
Those numbers might easily be ignored in the face of some of the more eye-catching misses, as Nunez has converted only four of his 14 ‘big chances’, from which Opta would expect a player to score.
Speaking ahead of Saturday’s game against Leeds United, Klopp listed a range of factors that would suggest a tough first season for Nunez, meaning he is willing to forgive those occasional failings in front of goal.
“Darwin came here after a short break in the summer, arriving in Asia, doesn’t speak a word [of English], and he’s young, and Liverpool’s a big club, and it’s a big step for him, and he was expensive,” Klopp said. “All these kinds of things.
“It’s like everybody’s looking at you – the whole place is dark and there’s one light that’s a spot on you. You have to deal with that, but we don’t expect them to deal immediately. If you cause it, then you have to be prepared, but he did not.”
After the red card, Klopp said: “He feels embarrassed for himself, definitely – that’s how everybody would react.
“From not being 100 per cent confident, getting a knock like this is not cool. He can blame nobody else. Then he has to start new.”
However, his manager added: “For all these things, his numbers are incredible, to be absolutely honest.
“You talk about the xG of Leeds, I’m pretty sure his xG is high as well. He had a few chances, which he missed, but he scored as well. He’s involved in a lot of finishing moments.
“The steps he’s made are really big, and that means automatically that he settles in more and more.”
With Nunez so impactful even while passing up such opportunities, his potential with a little more work is “so exciting”.
“Nobody knows [how good he can be]; he doesn’t know,” Klopp said. “That is so exciting.
“He has to stay fit and be available all the time, and he wasn’t against Nottingham [Forest]. That’s all important in the life of a professional football player.
“We have to work on all different areas. The potential is incredible. It’s not only speed; the attitude is really good, he’s a real worker.
“There are people out there who, technically, not sure, first touch… it’s incredible. He does not bring it on the pitch in the moment all the time. His first touch might be here or there sometimes, but it’s nothing to do with technique. It’s just a bit too late, awareness, orientation, all these kinds of things.
“It’s all possible to develop and learn, and that’s where we are at. It’s really exciting. But where it could go? I have no idea.”
Jurgen Klopp emphasised the importance of the three Premier League matches Liverpool will play before the World Cup break as they look to recover ground on their rivals.
Liverpool took the title fight all the way to the final day of the 2021-22 season, narrowly losing out to Manchester City, but they enter this weekend down in eighth, 12 points behind leaders Arsenal.
Ahead of the season pausing next month, the Reds will face Leeds United on Saturday, before visiting Tottenham after a Champions League clash with Napoli and hosting Southampton following an EFL Cup tie against Derby County.
Klopp’s side at least head into the Leeds game on a high, having secured their progress in Europe with a 3-0 win at Ajax.
Since losing 4-1 at Napoli, Liverpool have been flawless in the Champions League, although they have only won one of the three domestic matches that have followed directly after European successes.
Asked about the prospect of taking confidence from the win in Amsterdam, Klopp replied: “I think we’ve had this conversation or a similar conversation after all the games we won or won convincingly – Bournemouth, Rangers, Ajax.”
But he added: “We have to. It’s a better feeling. Of course, I sit here with a different feeling than if we’d lost to Ajax and we had to play Leeds and then we have a final against Napoli.
“I would feel different, I can tell you. At the moment, it’s not too important.
“We have to see who we can use again. The situation is it’s a tough five games until the World Cupbreak; for us, they’re all super important.
“Then there’s a long break and we’ll see how we come back and how others come back.
“We have to create the basis for the time after, and we have three games in the league, which are all difficult. I can’t find an easy one. After the World Cup break, we are the first to face Unai Emery with Aston Villa, and we have no idea what they will do then. Great.
“That’s our situation. Yes, the moment is okay, we are ready to fight again, I hope the people are ready to fight again.
“It’s 19:45, Saturday night, a great time to play a football game. Everybody is in the right shape, and let’s go for it.”
For opponents Leeds, Klopp has seen “a massive difference between the results they got and the performance they put in”.
It was suggested Leeds’ struggles might be evidence of a highly competitive Premier League, and Klopp answered: “City is not running away, which makes it already more competitive.
“There is not only two teams or one team up front; there are three, four, five teams up front. My problem with that is only that we are not one of them.”
Five points behind Newcastle United in fourth, let alone the title contenders, Klopp is looking to swiftly get Liverpool back on track.
He should at least be boosted by the presence of Thiago Alcantara and Jordan Henderson in midfield. Thiago is back, while Henderson should “be okay” after he was substituted at Ajax.
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has been fined but is set to avoid a touchline ban following an outburst during his team’s Premier League win over Manchester City.
The German was dismissed for a rant towards assistant referee Gary Beswick in the October 16 match that saw Mohamed Salah’s strike hand the Reds a morale-boosting win over the champions.
Klopp subsequently apologised for his actions and accepted the initial Football Association charge, for which he has now been served his punishment.
“Jurgen Klopp has been fined £30,000 for breaching FA rule E3 during Liverpool FC’s Premier League match against Manchester City FC on Sunday 16th October 2022,” read an FA statement.
“The manager accepted that his behaviour during the 86th minute was improper, and an independent regulatory commission imposed his sanction during a hearing.
“This sanction is subject to appeal by either Jurgen Klopp or the FA following receipt of the independent regulatory commission’s written reasons.”
Jurgen Klopphas insisted his comments about Manchester City’s ownership were not in any way xenophobic.
Last week, ahead of Liverpool’s meeting with the reigning Premier League champions at Anfield – which finished 1-0 to the Reds – Klopp claimed his side were unable to compete with City due to the financial might of their owners, the Abu Dhabi United Group, which bought the club in 2008.
City have gone from Premier League also-rans to a dominant force in English football, having won the title six times since 2012.
Indeed, four of the last five Premier League titles have gone City’s way, with Liverpool pushing them hard in two of those seasons as well as winning the top flight themselves in 2020.
Klopp said: “There are three clubs in world football who can do what they want financially.”
This was thought to be aimed at City, Paris Saint-Germain – owned by Qatar Sports Investments – and Newcastle United, who are majority owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.
When it was put to Klopp in a press conference that his comments were seen by some as xenophobic, the Liverpool manager replied: “I know myself. And you cannot hit with something which is miles away from my personality.
“If I was – I cannot remember the word – like this I would hate it. I would hate myself for being like this.
“I have said a lot of times things that were a little bit open for misunderstanding. I know that.
“It was not intentional, just sometimes you say things and you think, ‘Oh my God, it can be interpreted like this’, but this is not one of these moments. Absolutely.
“It started with a question [about how to compete with City] and I answered it and all the rest was made of it.
“I know what I thought and put it in perspective and said how much I respect what they are doing, and it was still not right for some.”
It has been reported City’s hierarchy believe Klopp’s pre-match comments increased tensions ahead of Sunday’s game on Merseyside, during which visiting fans sang chants referencing stadium disasters – later condemned by Liverpool – while Pep Guardiola claimed to have had coins thrown at him as his club said he was targeted by missiles from home supporters.
Klopp was sent off after furiously confronting an official and is now facing a Football Association charge for his behaviour on the touchline.
Jurgen Klopp says there is no reason for Liverpool and Manchester City to be “best friends” after tensions ignited at the weekend.
Liverpool manager Klopp insisted he did not mean to inflame the rivalry between the clubs by referencing the wealth of Premier League champions City ahead of their game on Sunday, in which his team snatched a 1-0 win.
“There are three clubs in world football who can do what they want financially,” Klopp said, two days ahead of the City clash.
That has been widely taken as a reference to City, Newcastle United and Paris Saint-Germain, each with wealthy Middle East owners.
City were reported to have considered the comments from Klopp to be almost xenophobic, and the Anfield tussle between the teams became an explosive affair, with Klopp sent off after snapping at assistant referee Gary Beswick.
There was trouble in the stands, too, with Pep Guardiola pelted with coins, while a number of City fans sang offensive songs about the Hillsborough and Heysel stadium disasters.
“I’m not sure we have to be best friends with other clubs, to be honest,” Klopp said in a press conference on Tuesday.
“I don’t think anybody wants to be best friends with us. I never heard about that at least. It’s a completely normal competition.
“But apart from that, it started here with a question and I answered it, and all the rest was made of it.
“I know what I thought when I said it. I thought I had put it all in perspective and said how much I respect all that they are doing, and obviously it was still not right for some.
“But the most important thing, as a club and as a team together with our supporters, we showed an incredible performance on Sunday.”
Klopp added: “It’s not the first time I’ve been misunderstood.”
He said supporters would be held to account if they stepped out of line. As well as incidents in the stadium, City complained their team bus was attacked as it left Anfield.
“If something happens, if one guy throws a coin, it’s one fan and it’s a massive mistake, definitely, and will get punished,” Klopp said. “And after the game, if something happens, it’s one supporter or maybe two supporters and not all of them.”
Liverpool host David Moyes’ West Ham on Wednesday, looking to back up what Klopp called a “massive” win over City, which came after a rocky start to the season for the Reds.
They remain 14 points behind leaders Arsenal, albeit with a game in hand, so Klopp says the Hammers clash is another huge fixture.
“We’re at the moment in the season when you realise from now on they’re all finals,” Klopp said. “I’m not sure you can give games more importance than we already put in. It’s very important absolutely.
“We respect them a lot. They’ve caused us a lot of problems here and there as well. David is doing an incredible job.”
Jurgen Kloppadmitted he deserved to be sent off against Manchester City, but the Liverpool manager also aired his disappointment at the officiating during his team’s 1-0 win at Anfield.
Mohamed Salah scored the only goal of a frenetic game on Sunday, latching onto a long pass from Alisson with 14 minutes remaining to finish past Ederson.
It was City’s first Premier League defeat of the season, but the visitors were left frustrated when Phil Foden’s second-half strike with the score at 0-0 was chalked off after referee Anthony Taylor was asked to look at the pitchside monitor by the video assistant referee, which showed Erling Haaland pulling over Fabinho in the build-up.
City boss Pep Guardiola and Klopp both showed frustration at Taylor’s decisions through the game, with the latter shown a red card after objecting to a challenge on Salah with five minutes remaining going unpunished.
“Yeah, it’s about emotion of course… red card, my fault,” Klopp conceded at his post-match press conference.
“I went over the top in the moment, I don’t think I was disrespectful to anybody but when you look at the pictures back – I know myself for 55 years that the way I look in these moments is already worth a red card.
“I lost it in that moment and that is not OK, but I think a little bit as an excuse I would like to mention, how can you not whistle that foul [on Salah]? How on earth is it possible? And I wish I could get an explanation.
“I don’t know what Pep said now in here, probably not a lot, probably very disappointed or frustrated or whatever. But during the game we agreed completely that Anthony Taylor just let the things run. Why would you do that? Both teams, it was not one, but I heard now that people said it was Anfield that made the VAR decision [to disallow Foden’s goal].
“With a foul on Mo, Anfield had no chance to make any impact. It’s a foul on Fabinho, I think we agree on that. Is it not enough to pull somebody down?
“So there was already the first moment where Pep and I were pretty animated, both, but actually for the same reason to be 100 per cent honest. For the same reason, we were not arguing with each other, not at all.
“Then [the red card] situation, I just had the perfect view, and the linesman, and you can imagine we are 1-0 up and we have a free-kick there or a counter-attack there. That is pretty much a 100 per cent difference and that was when I snapped and again, I am not proud of that, but it happened.”
One negative for Klopp was seeing Diogo Jota injured late on. The Portugal international has only recently returned from injury, but his manager did not sound hopeful, saying: “Diogo, I wish I wouldn’t have to talk about it.
“When I saw he goes down and there was not a lot of contact, you can see a little bit that somebody kicks his foot and maybe the muscle got overstretched, [playing for] 96 minutes, that’s not good for the muscle. He felt it immediately and now we have to wait to see how bad it is.”
Klopp already had to make changes to his line-up due to injuries, with Ibrahima Konate missing out and James Milner starting at right-back, meaning Joe Gomez moved back into the middle of the defence.
The 25-year-old helped to keep Haaland and company quiet, and Klopp praised his “outstanding talent”, along with Milner’s efforts.
“It’s just great for Joey that he can show what a player he is,” he said. “Outstanding, outstanding talent, a great player and can play different positions, obviously.
“Today was sensational, a mature performance together with Virgil [van Dijk] and the two full-backs.
“I’d like to mention – and it’s fine, Joey deserves all the praise – but I am pretty sure before the game a lot of people thought, ‘Oh, James Milner against Phil Foden.’ The way James Milner played was absolutely unbelievable. Joey as well.”
Jurgen Klopp‘s reaction to the assistant referee in Liverpool’s win over Manchester City earned him a red card
A leading referees’ charity has called for an inquiry into the touchline behaviour of managers after ugly scenes at several Premier League matches.
Jurgen Klopp’s red card for berating a referee’s assistant during Liverpool’s win over Manchester City was among a number of flashpoint incidents.
It came on a weekend where Merseyside Youth League games were postponedexternal-link amid ongoing issues with referee abuse.
“People mimic what they see on TV,” said Ref Support UK CEO Martin Cassidy.
“For years, we have said the dissension towards referees comes from the top down as well as the bottom up.
“When you see world recognised figures like Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola behaving like that, it is then replicated by people in youth football and perpetuates the idea that it is OK to do it.”
Why I love being a referee and won’t quitFA issued 380 bans for grassroots official attacks last season
Klopp apologised in his post-match comments but insisted his behaviour had been borne out of frustration at what he saw as the officials’ failure to award Liverpool a free-kick for a challenge on Mohamed Salah.
“Something snapped in that situation, I’m not proud of that – I deserved a red card, and the way I looked in this moment is not right,” the German, 55, admitted.
However, Cassidy, a Liverpool fan, said apologies would not suffice and that the League Managers Association must encourage its members to behave more respectfully.
“As far as I’m aware, the LMA has never put out a statement condemning this behaviour – is there a code of conduct? They have to take responsibility,” he said.
“The time has come to have some form of inquiry into the behaviour of people on the touchline – it goes on and on and I don’t think people understand the ramifications it has at grassroots level.”
BBC Sport has approached the LMA for comment.
View more on twitter
While Klopp’s tirade towards the official running the line at Anfield was the highest-profile instance of dissent, it was by no means alone on a day packed with controversy.
His counterpart Pep Guardiola confronted Anthony Taylor when the referee, invited to consult his pitchside monitor by the video assistant referee, disallowed a City goal for a foul by Erling Haaland.
United players, led by Bruno Fernandes, remonstrate with referee Craig Pawson during the draw with Newcastle
Elsewhere, Manchester United players angrily surrounded referee Craig Pawson for disallowing a Cristiano Ronaldo goal in their stalemate with Newcastle United.
There were similar scenes from West Ham‘s players at Southampton, castigating Peter Bankes for not ruling out Saints’ opener, while Hammers boss David Moyes said the VAR needed “to go to Specsavers”.
And Chris Kavanagh was also crowded by players from both sides at Elland Road in another game heavy on VAR intervention as Premier League leaders Arsenal beat Leeds.
The flashpoints are pictured below – and have your say on the issue.
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola and Rodri confront referee Anthony Taylor during the defeat at LiverpoolAnthony Taylor makes his way through a crowd of Manchester City players and coaches to inspect the VAR monitorTV pictures showed players, managers and fans giving referee Anthony Taylor their thoughts as he watched the VAR replayReferee Craig Pawson is in the middle of a scrum of protesting Manchester United playersVirtually the entire outfield Manchester United line-up protested the decision to referee Craig PawsonUnited boss Erik ten Hag declined to comment on Pawson’s performance in his post-match press conferenceWest Ham players surround referee Peter Bankes complaining about Southampton’s opening goal in the 1-1 drawReferee Chris Kavanagh endured the ire of both teams in Leeds’ defeat by Arsenal at Elland Road…’Yellow cards for abuse the solution’ – Lineker
BBC Sport presenter Gary Lineker believes the problem of referee abuse in the professional game can be solved by the implementation of stricter punishments.
“I think you stop that by issuing yellow cards for any form of abuse whatsoever and then make it red straight after,” Lineker, who was famously never booked during his playing career, told BBC Radio 5 Live.
“It’ll be carnage for a few weeks, but they’ll learn like they do, like they did with kicking players, you can’t do it anymore. It would work, I’m convinced of that.”
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Jurgen Klopp says Liverpool will experience a familiar rush heading into Sunday’s clash with Manchester City, despite writing off their Premier League title chances.
Klopp has openly dismissed the possibility of the Reds contending for top spot this term, having already slipped 14 points behind leaders Arsenal and 13 adrift of champions City.
Liverpool have regularly been City’s closest challengers in recent seasons, twice taking them to the final day and winning the title themselves in 2019-20.
As such, matches between the two teams have made for compelling viewing, with the championship seemingly on the line.
Yet Klopp, while acknowledging his side will not be celebrating come May, suggests the title element could still be relevant this weekend as Liverpool welcome City – “definitely the best football team in the world” – to Anfield.
“It could be [a title decider] this year… just not with us,” Klopp said.
“When you play City, the results left and right are not really important. This game requires all your focus, requires all the things you know about football.
“I enjoy preparing the game really, but it’s the biggest challenge you can face in football.
“Football is all about closing down spaces, closing down players, making challenges in the right areas, these kind of things. With City, it’s always: if you close down here, they are there; if you close down that gap, you open up that gap. The pitch is so big, and we have only 10 players to close all the gaps.
“It’s always a challenge. It’s not that we now feel different; it’s a home game, it’s Anfield, it’s us against Man City.
“They are, at the moment, definitely the best football team in the world, that’s how it is. But we will give it a try anyway, knowing there are no guarantees. We get help from a full Anfield and we try to use that.”
Liverpool come into the match on a high after winning 7-1 against Rangers in the Champions League.
That was an encouraging result and performance for Klopp, but having also beaten Bournemouth 9-0 this season before again struggling, he added a joke at his team’s expense.
“It’s helpful when these boys at least still know where the goal is,” he said. “We just need to spread the goals a bit more to different games.
“We should not focus on one, then nine, then seven, then nil. We know that.”
Jurgen Klopp has effectively conceded defeat in the Premier League title race following Liverpool’s underwhelming start to the season.
The Reds went into the weekend ninth in the table and will finish Sunday in the bottom half if they lose to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.
Klopp’s side have taken just 10 points from their opening seven league outings, winning only twice, and neither of those wins were in their three away games.
Not since the 2010-11 season under Roy Hodgson have the Reds failed to win any of their first four matches away from Anfield in the league.
They will do well to beat an Arsenal side who have won seven out of a possible eight fixtures to this point.
Despite Arsenal’s strong start, Manchester City are most people’s strong favourites for the title, particularly given Erling Haaland’s form.
Even if Liverpool win at Arsenal, they will need to make up a 10-point deficit on City – whom they face next weekend – and Klopp seemed to accept that is not going to happen.
“We still have the chance to create something really special from this point,” he said ahead of the game.
“Does it look at the moment that we will be champions at the end of the year? Unfortunately not.”
Klopp added: “But in all other competitions we’re not out yet.
“Nobody knows where we will end up in the league yet so let’s just give it a go, that’s it.
“Difficult? Yes. Impossible? No. That’s enough. So let’s just go from here.
“Did I think we’d be ninth after matchday seven? No, but this is the base where are now and we must go from here.”
Liverpool have won their previous four league matches against Arsenal, but they have never beaten the Gunners fives times in a row.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has showed praises on Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey ahead of their Premier League match week nine encounter at the Emirates stadium on Sunday.
The Ghanaian midfielder scored his first goal of the season for Arsenal in their 3-1 win over Tottenham in north London derby at home last Saturday.
Partey, who has missed four games due to injury this season, including his side’s only defeat of the campaign so far at Old Trafford against Manchester United has made five appearances and scored one goal for Arsenal across all competitions this season.
“He’s brought Xhaka back on track, everyone knew how Thomas Partey was when he was at Atletico, and now they’ve found a way how they want to defend,” Klopp said as quoted by SkySports.
“They played a different line-up on Thursday but still with lots of quality; it’s a young team, a very exciting team and doing very well, which is well-deserved.”
Jurgen Klopp believes the criticism that has come Liverpool’s way in recent weeks has been justified, as he quipped he is relishing the chance to read a newspaper again.
Liverpool have had an underwhelming start to the season and sit ninth in the Premier League following Saturday’s 3-3 draw with Brighton and Hove Albion.
They bounced back in the Champions League on Tuesday, beating Rangers 2-0 at Anfield thanks to Trent Alexander-Arnold’s free-kick and Mohamed Salah’s penalty.
Rangers goalkeeper Allan McGregor pulled off a string of excellent saves to keep the scoreline respectable, with Darwin Nunez frustrated in his search for a first Anfield goal, but the Reds got the job done with a minimum of fuss to claim a second straight win in Group A following their 2-1 defeat of Ajax last month.
When it was put to him in his post-match news conference if Liverpool had used criticism of their performances as additional motivation, Klopp said with a smile: “I cannot wait for the moment when I can read newspapers again!”
He continued: “No, I have no clue. The criticism was completely fine. We are not over the moon about our situation, let’s put it like this.
“We’ve still been playing some really good games, it’s not like [success] was 10 years ago. Champions League nights at Liverpool are always quite enjoyable, usually.
“I don’t think it had too much to do with the situation. I saw tonight a team fully committed, that’s what I like about it.”
Captain Jordan Henderson, who started alongside Thiago Alcantara in a two-man midfield as Klopp tweaked his side’s formation, told BT Sport: “It can be difficult. You try to not listen to social media especially when you go through a tough period as an individual or a team.
“You’ve got to switch off the noise and focus on what you do day-to-day and stay focused on what we’re trying to achieve as a team. That’s not easy. It can hurt players at times but you’ve got to try and find a way to use it as fuel and energy on the pitch.”
Alexander-Arnold has been one of the players to face the most scrutiny, but delivered an excellent performance.
His stunning free-kick seven minutes in opened the scoring and he finished with more touches (96) and more successful passes in the opponent’s half (40) than any other player, while he also produced a joint-high four tackles.
He has now scored more free-kicks (six) than any other Liverpool player since the start of the 2016-17 season, while the England international – who was left out by Gareth Southgate for the Three Lions’ final match before the World Cup against Germany – is the first Reds player to net such a goal in the Champions League since Steven Gerrard against Basel in 2014.
“It’s a wonderful goal. What can I say?” Klopp said.
“He played a good game, defensively especially. It is not that he has had a defensive problem it’s that we have had a defensive problem, because our line was not right.
“If the timing is not right, you open gaps and these gaps are very often on the back of Trent but not because of him, but because of the situation where we put our right-back.”
Henderson added: “You’ve got to give Trent a license to get forward and produce what he can produce up the pitch. I thought he was good defensively tonight, he did the basics really well. I didn’t have to cover too much.”
Jurgen Klopp says there are no “instant” solutions in football as Liverpool look to bounce back ahead of their Champions League clash with Rangers.
The Reds failed to turn their rough form around upon their return to Premier League action this weekend when they were held to a 3-3 draw by Brighton and Hove Albion.
With just one win in their last four games across all competitions, Klopp’s side – FA Cup and EFL Cup winners last term as well as Champions Leaguefinalists – risk falling short on multiple fronts this term.
But the German feels his side will be able to work out their problems, stating they must “go back to the basics” and that they cannot expect an immediate revival of fortunes.
“We realised after Napoli it was a real low point, and we had to change things quickly,” he stated. “We didn’t play Wolves, played Ajax, then didn’t play Chelsea and couldn’t keep up any momentum from the Ajax win.”
“When you spot a problem and think you have the solution, you expect the solution to be instant and influential, that’s never the case in football.
“When it doesn’t work out, you realise step by step that you have to go back to the basics. We have to be patient again to do the right thing, and then we will be fine again.”
Liverpool’s mixed form has made it hard for new signing Darwin Nunez to have the desired impact after an early season red card, but Klopp is unconcerned over the forward’s personal attributes.
“He is still adapting,” he added. “New players come in and everybody talks about them and wants them to shine immediately and that happens from time to time.
“We had a long talk yesterday and we told him we are completely calm. It’s really important in our situation that he isn’t worrying. The three-game suspension didn’t help him to settle, that’s clear.
“The team isn’t flying and that doesn’t make it easier for a striker, especially a finisher. It’s not that everything is clicking, that is not our situation at the moment.”
Jurgen Kloppwould pick “exceptional” Trent Alexander-Arnold in any team after the full-back was overlooked by England manager Gareth Southgate.
The Liverpool defender, 23, did not figure against Italy and was dropped from the squad thatdrew with Germany.
Reds boss Klopp says there is “space for improvement” in Alexander-Arnold’s defensive game, but his offensive ability is “so extreme”.
“I’d decide obviously differently, but I’m not in charge,” said Klopp.
“My point of view, it’s an easy pick. Whichever team I would coach in the moment, I would sign him because he is exceptional.”
Southgate has said he feels Alexander-Arnold’s “all-round game” is behind that of right-back rival Kieran Trippier.
Alexander-Arnold, who missed last year’s European Championship through injury, has made just one international appearance this year.
He has been a key player for a Liverpool side that has won the Premier League and Champions League in recent years, but he has struggled to transfer that form to international football and has won just 17 caps since his 2018 debut.
“You really want to open this box?” said Klopp.
“We are fine here because it’s completely different because I see him differently. It’s obvious.
“There are stories out there all the time that talk about him and say he’s not a good defender, but that’s not true.
“He is a good defender. He doesn’t always defend good, that is true as well, but that is what we’re working on – he is a young player, he is 23.
“There is space for improvement, definitely, but we only discuss it on the level we discuss it because his offensive impact is so extreme for us. It could be for each team in the world.”
‘Alexander-Arnold was not in party mood on return’
Southgate prefers to start with Chelsea’s Reece James, who can also play as part of a back three, with Trippier as back-up, making Alexander-Arnold’s chances of being in England’s World Cup squad increasingly slim.
But Klopp believes Alexander-Arnold could still find a way to prosper in the current squad, and has no concerns about his player’s response to his latest England setback.
He added: “Trent came back and was not in a party mood, but he just accepts the decision of the manager as well because he understands football pretty well.
“He is an extremely smart boy and in football you cannot offer more than you can offer.
“For me he is a world-class player, and not playing for your country is difficult, but it is only because there are other world-class players as well.
“England is obviously blessed with a lot of really talented players in a similar position and it’s difficult to line them all up together.
“In this case, it could work. Reece James can play in a three in the back, and that would be interesting to see how they could interchange positions.”
Liverpool lost in their opener on Wednesday against Napoli and according to Jurgen Klopp, this indicates that the club must reinvent themselves.
An abject showing in Naples, coupled with just two wins in six Premier League games, left manager Klopp questioning whether Liverpool need to reshape to tackle a challenging start.
“Really tough to take, it’s not that difficult to explain when you watched the game. To start with the two penalties, okay first of all Napoli played a really good game, we didn’t, that is the first explanation for the defeat,” the German told BT Sport.
“They scored one penalty and missed another but the next two goals we served on a plate, that’s not cool and we should defend better. Then 3-0 down having chances but never really in the game. We were not compact defensively or offensively. Until Thiago [Alcantara] entered the pitch I cannot remember one counter-pressing situation, we were too wide,” Klopp added.
“Everything is obvious but why it happened is now the question, I cannot answer now, let me think about it. It is a really tough cookie to take, but I have to take it.
“We played bad first halves, unfortunately, usually we don’t concede three, though with Alisson in the goal you have to be really bad to do it. We did the same here when we lost 2-0 [in 2019-20].
“It looks like we have to reinvent ourselves, there’s a lot of things lacking not in all games but the fun part is we have do that in the middle of a Premier League season and Champions League campaign,” he said.
Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool lost by 4:1 at the end of the game in the Champions League.
Liverpool trailed by three goals at half-time for just the fourth time in their Champions League history after strikes from Piotr Zielinski, Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and Giovanni Simeone on Wednesday.
Victor Osimhen also missed a first-half penalty after another slow start from Liverpool, who have conceded first in five games this season in all competitions, the joint-most of any Premier League side.
Zielinski added a second strike after the interval, with Luis Diaz scoring a consolation goal as Liverpool fell to their joint-heaviest defeat in the Champions League.
Wolves are next up for Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday, and Klopp suggested Bruno Lage’s side will be relishing playing the Reds amid a poor run of form.
“In three days we play against Wolves, if they saw the game tonight they cannot stop laughing probably, I would say it is the perfect moment [to play us],” he added.
“We have to find a setup to be much better in everything. You could see it on the pitch, we were not working as a team, nothing to do with personal stuff, but we didn’t play good enough it is obvious and clear.
“We play in the strongest league in the world and have a tough Champions League group, but it is my responsibility and I need time to think about.
“There a few things that are obvious but it is my job to find out more to reset and go.”
Liverpool’s fixture list appears to have delivered the perfect pick-me-up with the visit of newly-promoted Bournemouth for a traditional 3pm kick-off at Anfield on Saturday.
The Reds have been off colour so far with only two points taken from three very winnable games – the most concerning performance of the lot being Monday’s meek showing in Manchester.
Jurgen Klopp seemed lost for answers as to why his team have underwhelmed, but the Liverpool boss has had a few days to come up with new solutions ahead of the Cherries’ visit.
Bournemouth boss Scott Parker was the last visiting manager to come away from Anfield with a Premier League victory when he did so with Fulham in March 2021.
The Englishman’s inspiring pre-match team talk that day warned his players of how much they would need to suffer – something Klopp and Liverpool fully intend to make happen.
Team news
Klopp has revealed Naby Keita is not yet ready to return after admitting on Monday that the midfielder’s muscle injury required further assessment.
Curtis Jones remains unavailable because of a calf problem while Thiago Alcantara is still at least a couple of weeks away from a return from a hamstring injury.
Fabinho is likely to come into the Reds midfield after starting on the bench against Manchester Utd with James Milner due a rest.
With Joel Matip and fellow centre-back Ibrahima Konate still absent, Joe Gomez will continue alongside Virgil van Dijk in what is likely to be an unchanged Liverpool back four.
A lack of available options up front because of Darwin Nunez’s suspension and Diogo Jota’s injury means Roberto Firmino is set to continue alongside Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz.
Former Liverpool striker Dominic Solanke could be available to play once more after missing the Cherries’ defeats to Manchester City and Arsenal with an ankle issue.
He could be restored to a two-man attack alongside Kieffer Moore if he comes through Friday’s training session unscathed, although starting him on the bench would be the sensible option.
Junior Stanislas, Ryan Fredericks and Joe Rothwell remain sidelined as a result of their respective injuries.
The stats
Klopp has made seven changes to his starting XI in Liverpool’s first three matches – no other Premier League manager has made more so far.
Milner’s recent inclusion has pushed the average age of Liverpool’s 2022-23 line-ups to 28 years and 163 days old – second only to West Ham in the first three Premier League matchday.
The absence of Thiago appears to be being keenly felt by the winless Reds, given the Spaniard has not finished on the losing side in 27 league matches he has started since March 2021.
Liverpool have averaged 2.6 points per game during that sequence, but just 2.0 per game when he hasn’t started for them with the same time period.
Bournemouth have lost on seven of their last eight visits to Anfield in the Premier League.
The Cherries have recorded only 16 shots so far this season, the fewest of any Premier League club through the opening three games since Huddersfield in 2018-19.
Prediction
History does not favour Scott Parker’s Bournemouth
Liverpool look more vulnerable to a potentially huge home shock than at any time since Parker’s Fulham inflicted their sixth Anfield defeat in a row late in that injury-hit 2020-21 campaign.
Yet it will still take a herculean effort from the Cherries to resist the Reds for 90 minutes, particularly with Klopp looking for a reaction to their defeat at Old Trafford.
Liverpool will take any win right now, whether it is ugly or laced with controversy, just to get their season back on track and it could pay to oppose them in handicap markets.
Bournemouth held the lead briefly before going down 2-1 on their last trip to the red half of Merseyside and something of a similar order might be on the cards this weekend.
Liverpool will play a friendly one day after their Premier League opener at Fulham next weekend, manager Jurgen Klopp said, adding that his players need more match practice to cope with a packed schedule in the 2022-23 season.
Liverpool, who have played Manchester United, Crystal Palace, RB Leipzig and Salzburg during preseason, clash with Manchester City in the Community Shield at Leicester’s King Power Stadium on Saturday.
They will host Ligue 1 side Strasbourg in a friendly at Anfield on Sunday and begin their league campaign at Fulham on Aug. 6
Klopp said Liverpool will play another friendly the following day against as-yet unnamed opponents to get players up to speed for the new season, which begins earlier than usual because of the World Cup in Qatar in November and December.
“The situation is that [Saturday] is a very important game but we still have to prepare [for] a season, so we cannot ignore that,” Klopp told reporters on Thursday.
“We played last night against Salzburg, we lost 1-0. We trained the day before twice, so pretty intense… I cannot ignore the fact that after this important [Community Shield] game there is a season coming up. So we have to extend our preseason into the season.
“From mid-August on, I think we play every three days, so there is no time for training any more. So we try to do the right things and the schedule is always a challenge, that’s how it is.”
Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson and forward Diogo Jota will miss Saturday’s game against City as they continue to recover from injuries.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp struggled to contain his emotions after seeing Reds fans return to Anfield on Sunday.
A small crowd of 2,000 were allowed to attend the Premier League clash against Wolves and Klopp’s team rewarded them by claiming an emphatic 4-0 win.
Mohamed Salah opened the scoring in the 24th minute before Georginio Wijnaldum and Joel Matip struck in the second half with a Nelson Semedo own-goal wrapping up the result late on.
While satisfied with his team’s strong performance, it was the return of the Anfield faithful that really struck a chord with Klopp.
“The game, the atmosphere, it was so nice. I had goosebumps. They started ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ – really nice. I never knew it could feel that good,” Klopp told the BBC post-match, before starting to become emotional.
“This started in February and we were waiting to get normality back,” he continued. “Normality is good – I don’t think we appreciated it as much. It was very very touching.
“Wasn’t it a perfect night? Whatever the weather was like outside, it was sunshine inside the stadium.
“There were a few challenges before the game – Wolves play different systems. I gave the boys information about how to press them. The boys were outstanding with how they dealt with them – our best result against Wolves.”
On young goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher, who started the game and kept an impressive clean sheet, Klopp added: “Very mature. Very calm. Very good with the ball and without the ball. It was a night to remember for him.”
Wijnaldum netted a superb second goal for the Reds and though quick to dismiss questions about a new contract, he was also thrilled to have fans back at Anfield.
“It’s wonderful – really exciting when we heard supporters were allowed. It was a great feeling they were back,” Wijnaldum said.
“I don’t want to say it’s a ‘champions’ performance’. We were patient, the position play was good and we scored good goals.
“The fans helped the performance a lot because they cheered during the game and before we only had the bench for support.”
The Liverpool boss has helped put together one of Europe’s great teams on Merseyside, though the majority of his signings were regarded as players with potential when they arrived at Anfield, rather than world-beaters.
The German coach has done an outstanding job in coaxing the very best out of his Premier League-winning squad. But he, along with Liverpool’s much-vaunted recruitment team, must also be credited with being able to spot the potential gems in the market.
And getting a glowing reference from the Reds boss is every young player’s dream. That is exactly what happened to Jeremy Doku when he visited Liverpool’s Melwood training ground in 2018.
The then-16-year-old was visiting the club as he considered his options ahead of signing his first professional contract later that season. That was when Klopp made his pitch.
“Klopp explained how he saw a potential successor to Sadio Mane in Jeremy,” Doku’s father, David, told Het Nieuwsblad in an interview during which he explained just how welcoming Liverpool had been as they attempted to convince the teenage winger to join them.
“At the age of 16, Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, Man City, Ajax and PSV were interested. We then visited clubs like Liverpool and Ajax. My preference was Liverpool.
“Steven Gerrard showed us videos with tactical analysis. At the training complex [Simon] Mignolet, Mane and [Georginio] Wijnaldum came to talk to us. How we were received there – damn!”
Despite Liverpool’s eagerness to bring Doku to England, he instead opted to stay with boyhood club Anderlecht, though it needed the intervention of a player who, at the time, was plying his trade for Manchester United to finally help make his mind up.
“[Former Anderlecht general manager, Herman] Van Holsbeeck was convinced that he would lose Jeremy to Liverpool for almost nothing,” Doku Sr. explains. “But Anderlecht did everything to keep our son.
“They got smart with a video from Romelu Lukaku. As Jeremy hesitated to leave, that took away his final doubt.
“It was an idea of ??youth director Jean Kindermans. Romelu said in the video that it was better to break through in Belgium first and then leave through the main gates.”
Lukaku did just that during his youth in Belgium, and now Doku is aiming to follow in his footsteps after an impressive first full season in the senior ranks at Lotto Park.
Having joined the 34-time Belgian champions as a 10-year-old from his local club in Antwerp, Doku made his first-team debut as a substitute for the final 12 minutes of a 4-2 defeat to Sint-Truiden in November 2018.
That would be the first of six appearances over the course of the 2018-19 campaign, which ended with him playing the final 22 minutes of his side’s play-off defeat to Gent.
The summer of 2019 saw Vincent Kompany take over the managerial reins, and after impressing in pre-season, Doku was handed a start in each of the legendary centre-back’s first three league matches in charge.
But with Anderlecht struggling to adapt to their new player-coach, Doku soon found himself out of favour, with the tricky wideman limited to short cameos off the bench and reserve-team appearances to maintain his match fitness.
Four goals in three games for the reserves saw Doku reinstated to Kompany’s matchday squad in December, and after scoring and assisting in a 32-minute appearance against Oostende, he has been a regular starter ever since.
Playing predominantly off his favoured right-hand side, Doku made 24 appearances across all competitions before the 2019-20 campaign was curtailed by the coronavirus pandemic.
In what turned out to be his final match of the campaign he scored two goals himself and laid on a third in a 7-0 win over Zulte Waregem, taking his tally for the season to four goals and three assists.
A skilful dribbler who is comfortable on either flank, Doku has been compared to Raheem Sterling in some quarters, though it is felt he needs to work on his two-footedness to fully reach his potential.
There is even a school of thought within Belgium that he could become Eden Hazard’s long-term successor in the national team as the Red Devils begin to prepare for life after their ‘Golden Generation’ have moved on.
“I have rarely seen a player with so much explosiveness in the first metres, who can accelerate so quickly and change direction, while also maintaining perfect control of his body and the ball,” former Anderlecht manager Hein Vanhaezebrouck told Het Nieuwsblad when asked to assess Doku.
Jeremy Doku NxGn GFX
“His left foot is currently just mostly to lean on. There is still a lot of work to do. Defenders now know that they should not cover his left, that they can let him cross with it. If he perfects his left [foot], he is fully capable of reaching the top.
“Then he will even surpass Hazard in terms of potential. But that’s [something that needs] training, training, training. Hazard is 11 years older, give him time.”
Already capped four times at Under-21 level, Belgium manager Roberto Martinez is understood to be a fan of Doku’s having watched him in the flesh while he played at the 2019 U17 European Championships in Ireland.
There remain some hopes that the 18-year-old could still opt to play his international football for Ghana, leading to reports suggesting that Doku may even earn a call-up to Martinez’s squad in the autumn should he pick up where he left off next season.
Whether he will still be playing for Anderlecht by then remains up in the air. Liverpool continue to be linked with signing him while Real Madrid, Manchester United, AC Milan and Newcastle have also been mooted as possible destinations.
Doku’s current contract runs until 2022, and despite being rated as a €20 million (£18m/$23m) player before Covid-19 turned football on its head, there have been suggestions – not least from his agent – that he could be snapped up for far less this summer if he indeed is willing to move.
“He is happy here with us in Antwerp. He will stay with his parents for another two to three years,” his father, David, told Gazet van Antwerpen in May, though he was not totally dismissive when the subject of his son moving on from Anderlecht was brought up.
“That [a transfer] is a difficult question, isn’t it? He feels great at Anderlecht, but you can never rule it out.”
Whether it comes this summer or not, it is only a matter of time before Doku does fly the nest.
It would not be a surprise if it is Klopp who lands the player he saw as Mane’s successor, either. The Liverpool boss tends to find a way.
Jurgen Klopp insists player safety will come first and nobody in his Liverpool squad will be forced to train or play if they do not want to.
The Reds returned to training on Wednesday, with manager Klopp donning a face mask to put his players through their paces in small groups.
While Klopp enjoyed getting back to work at Melwood, he underlined the player-first approach the club will be taking as the threat of coronavirus continues to linger.
“It is the players’ choice and that is clear,” Klopp, whose squad sit on the brink of a maiden Premier League title, told Sky Sports.
“I said before the session, ‘You are here on free will. Usually you sign a contract and you have to be in when I tell you, but in this case if you don’t feel safe, you don’t have to be here’.
“There are no restrictions, no punishment, nothing. It’s their own decision and we respect that 100 per cent.
“The boys are fine. We would never put anybody in danger to do what we want to do. Yes, we love football, yes, it’s our job, but it’s not more important than our lives or the lives of other people.”
Asked how he found the experience of returning to work following a shutdown that started back in March, Klopp was characteristically enthusiastic.
“Brilliant, I really enjoyed it. The weather is fantastic, and the boys are in good spirits,” he said.
“This morning we had to come already changed so I felt a bit like a policeman in my uniform – finally, for the right reasons again. That felt pretty special.
“Then coming to Melwood and seeing all the boys was nice. Before the session we had to give an introduction to make sure everything went in line. It was a short meeting and then a little bit more about the targets and then we started training. That was the best part for a while, really good.
“The first 10 players were here, we have groups of five that train at the same time on different pitches obviously, far away from each other. It looked like football and that is what we want to do.
“For the boys, they had the longest break ever, around nine weeks. The international players usually have around two weeks in the summer, so we need to get used to a lot of things again. But the first impression was really positive.”
A total of 748 players and staff across the Premier League underwent tests for Covid-19 on Sunday and Monday, with six yielding positive results.
No date has yet been set for a return to action, though it is hoped the first top-flight fixtures behind closed doors could take place in June.
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Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp prefers Lionel Messi over Cristiano Ronaldo, even though he said the Juventus star was close to a “perfect player”.
Barcelona great Messi and Ronaldo are widely considered two of the greatest players of all-time, although just who is better continues to be debated .
While Klopp prefers Messi, the German paid tribute to both for their era of dominance, which has seen them win 11 of the past 12 Ballons d’Or.
Klopp lauded Ronaldo’s physical build, but said Messi was able to produce his magic while making it look so easy.
“For me Messi, but I couldn’t admire Ronaldo more than I do already,” Klopp told YouTube channel freekickerz.
“The explanation is the following. We’ve played against both already and both are almost impossible to defend.
“But Messi has much lower physical requirements from birth on. If you could paint yourself a perfect player, it would have Ronaldo’s height, he could jump and run as high or quick as Ronaldo can do. And what is then even added to that is his total attitude, it is absolutely perfect and professional, it couldn’t be any better.
“And on the other side there is the small Messi who makes everything look so simple. And therefore I like him maybe a little bit more as a player on the pitch. But Cristiano is also an absolutely incredible player.
“It’s really difficult therefore, but what both have in common is that both have left their footprints for such a long time.
“There are also some younger players who have a similar potential, but to do that over this time period is even more incredible.”
In an earlier interview, Klopp was asked which former Liverpool player he would sign if he could bring a legend back to the club in their peak.
The 52-year-old revealed that he would choose Steven Gerrard – but he jested the former skipper wouldn’t be an automatic selection.
“Stevie, that’s easy! But he’d have to fight for his place,” Klopp told BT Sport .
“The funny thing is we have lived for four-and-a-half years in the same town and I’ve never seen him before.
“Since the lockdown, I’ve seen him six or seven times. I go for a dog walk or a run or whatever, and he has a walk with the family, so we’ve seen each other more often than all the time together before!”
Jurgen Klopp admitted it was difficult to explain how Liverpool exited the Champions League at the hands of Atletico Madrid on Wednesday night, and doesn’t understand why the Spaniards “play like that”.
A defensive Atletico rode their luck in large parts at Anfield, but came from 2-0 down to win 3-2, progressing to the quarter-final 4-2 on aggregate, with Adrian at fault for at least one of their goals.
Klopp seemed dumbfounded by the result after the game, questioning Atletico’s playing style, but still insisted he was happy with Liverpool’s performance, with the Reds registering 35 shots on goal.
“We saw all the goals we conceded, we shouldn’t concede these kind of goals,” he told BT Sport. “Tonight, it is difficult to explain these goals, but it is like it is.
“I don’t understand with the quality they have the football they play. They could play proper football but they stand deep and have counter-attacks.
“I realise I am a really bad loser, especially when the boys put such an effort in against world-class players on the other side who defend with two rows of four. It doesn’t feel right tonight, to be honest.”
He then said in his post-match press conference: “I am a really under-average loser, to be honest, at least tonight. I could say a lot of things and I would look like the worst loser in the world. The way they play I just don’t get it. But the winner is right. That is how it is.”
Referring to Adrian’s miscued kick to Joao Felix, who then fed Marcos Llorente to score to make it 2-1 on the night, Klopp said: “We score the second goal and then everyone sees their first goal. The pass was not really helpful.
“Adrian is a lovely boy but in this moment he makes the wrong decision. In that moment, usually conceding a goal is part of football and shouldn’t have a massive influence. But in this moment, the
momentum changed. Before that, Madrid were wondering how they should cope. Before that, everything felt natural for us. Then we became a bit stiff and they became a bit fresher in the legs. They score two goals.”
Klopp admitted after the game that Liverpool had rode their own luck in Europe in previous seasons, reaching the final in the last two years and winning last term.
This time, luck was against them, but Klopp did not wish to complain.
“We have had lucky moments in the Champions League before. Most of the time we really deserved it, but we had some lucky moments as well. Tonight we are out. Atletico won both games, they deserve it. Everybody knows we will go again. We will come again.”
There will be criticism of Adrian, who played in place of the injured Alisson, in the aftermath of the game, but Klopp urged his critics to stay respectful.
“Come on, he is a man and he knows. We don’t blame him for a second. What you do, I don’t know about you, but stay respectful, that would be nice. He has saved us in so many moments since he has been here. He has had super performances. This goal didn’t help but that’s how it is.
“If you lose a game you always lose it for some reason. Tonight, this was not the moment when we lost the game. It had an impact but it was one goal. We conceded two more goals after that. We didn’t score the goals. There were plenty of reasons why we didn’t go through.
“But always when you are in the public, people will judge you. But he’s a man, a grown man, and he will live with that.”
Jurgen Klopp took aim at VAR – and admitted he regretted celebrating towards the linesman after a controversial opener in Liverpool’s 2-1 win over Bournemouth.
Liverpool fell behind to Callum Wilson’s ninth-minute opener at Anfield but were incensed the goal was allowed to stand even after a VAR review for what appeared a blatant push on Joe Gomez in the build-up.
The hosts would go on to recover before the break through goals from Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane, to put a week including back-to-back defeats behind them and move within three wins of the title, but Klopp’s frustration was plain to see as he celebrated towards the linesman in front of his dugout when Mane completed the hosts’ turnaround.
Admitting some regret at his enthusiastic reaction towards the officials, Klopp said: “I was in good spirits, let me say it like this.
“To be honest, that happened [the celebration]. I didn’t want it, do I want to do it now? No. But in that moment, I just don’t understand how it could be a goal.
“There’s situations, we talk about it, but we have to make the decision. It shows the problems in VAR still existing. It’s not VAR, the system, it’s a human being and the rules. It was a foul. The touch was enough to let Joe struggle, it’s a foul, nothing else.
“They score a goal, the ref lets it run, that’s why we have VAR so you can have another look. A couple of weeks ago VAR made really tough decisions on one matchday, two different games, Tottenham and City, right, wow. How is that possible that someone sits there and doesn’t see it?
“The question is how is it possible you have a look at it and don’t say, ‘ah yes, that’s a foul’. Mike Dean [fourth official] I’m sure sees it’s a foul but cannot intervene any more so he says let’s go to VAR, and it hides behind the phrase ‘not clear and obvious’. It makes no sense, a foul is a foul, no foul is no foul, but if it’s that clear, you look at it and say come on.
“No one felt confident after that, not the referee, no one. It was easy to sort with someone sitting in a room who says yes, come on, foul. I understand 100 per cent Bournemouth may see it differently, but it’s a clear foul.
“I was absolutely happy about the result, the three points and the performance because I knew it would be tricky for different reasons.
“I think the decisions of the ref around the goals made it even more tricky for us, obviously.
“We wanted to fight back before the game and after that we had to fight back. How we played after being 1-0 down was exceptional, to be honest.
“I don’t want to make it too big but in a moment when you have to fight back for the momentum and then you get a decision like that and a goal like this, there are other teams in the history of football which would then slip.
“The boys’ reaction today, I loved – I really loved.”
Jurgen Klopp played down concerns over Liverpool’s form after they were knocked out of the FA Cup with a 2-0 loss to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night.
Goals from Willian and Ross Barkley consigned Liverpool – unbeaten in the Premier League until Saturday’s 3-0 loss to Watford – to a third defeat in four games in all competitions.
It represents a significant dip for a side who had only failed to win one of their previous 12 games, but Klopp insisted he is not worried about their loss of momentum in his post-match press conference, adding that he was pleased by his side’s overall performance.
“Losing 2-0 is not good, but in this case it’s relatively easy to explain,” he said. “We made two massive mistakes around the goals.
“The performance tonight was completely different to the performance against Watford. Against Watford, it was really bad. Tonight, it was not bad.
“I liked the reaction. I liked the way we played. There was some good stuff.
“It was a super intense game. We made seven changes because we knew it would be intense. But I’m not concerned about momentum. It’s football.
“We never thought that it would be an easy season, that it would be an easy period, that it would be an easy game tonight. Nothing. It was always difficult, but we did very well. We were just not good enough in decisive moments, and that’s what we have to accept.”
The questions over their form are unlikely to go away, however.
Liverpool retain a 22-point advantage over Manchester City at the top of the Premier League table, but their FA Cup hopes are over and next week they must overturn a one-goal deficit against Atletico Madrid in order to keep their Champions League challenge alive.
Klopp accepts that defensive improvement is required if they are to turn the recent results around.
“It went our way for so long because we defended outstanding,” he said of Liverpool’s season. “Usually, you don’t get a lot of chances against us. Now, we have to admit that in the last three or four games we have conceded too many goals.”
Frank Lampard, meanwhile, felt Chelsea’s performance showed their potential to compete with the top sides.
“It was an impressive performance,” he said. “It is hard to be comprehensive against Liverpool because of the team that they are, but I couldn’t have asked for any more with the spirit, the work ethic and the quality.
“You’ve got to defend well to keep a clean sheet against them because of the team that they are, but we deserved to win the game.
“I think we may have played some better football in the two previous games against Liverpool, but today we had an extra spirit about us and we need to take the positives from that. We can compete against the big teams.
“Wins or losses can come down to what you do in both boxes, and we got a slice of luck today. We took two chances that won us the game. We are still in transition and working towards closing the gap on [Liverpool], and to do that we have to find consistency.”
“We are not the Chelsea of different ers gone by with Hazards, Costas and Terrys. We are in a different place with young players, and some older players, and we are trying to bridge the gap upwards,” he added.
“It is important to know that unless we work hard every day in training and unless we go home and all we think about is how we improve then we can’t make that jump up.”
Jurgen Klopp admits there was no point ranting and raving at his Liverpool players just to make himself feel better after they lost their unbeaten Premier League record at Watford.
The shock 3-0 reverse at Vicarage Road ended a 44-match undefeated run in the top flight and also prevented the Reds setting a new Premier League record of 19 successive victories.
But, instead of laying into his players after their poorest performance in over a year, Klopp gave them a calculated assessment of where they had gone wrong after re-watching the match on his return home on Saturday as he appreciates what they have achieved this season.
Klopp said he would be an “idiot” if he now began to doubt their character and no longer trust them.
“It can happen that I get angry with the players, but I didn’t get angry with the players in this meeting,” he said.
“From a common-sense point of view, if I go in that meeting and shout at them like they have lost the last 10 games in a row because of a bad attitude, that would be really strange.
“I am not interested that after the meeting I feel better. I am interested in the boys getting the right information and it can be more emotional – I would not say angry – or less emotional.
“If you need to analyse, you analyse and analysis is not really emotional. It is looking at the facts and we were just not good enough. That is the easy answer.”
After two defeats in three matches, having also lost in the Champions League to Atletico Madrid, the FA Cup trip to Chelsea takes on extra significance for the Reds in terms of regaining the momentum they had before the mid-season break.
The message was not lost on the players and Klopp is confident they are ready to, in one of his favourite phrases, “strike back”.
“There was no applause. They don’t come to me and say, ‘That was a great meeting boss’,” he added.
“Of course, they want to strike back. This is an exceptional group of players. The situation we are in is special. Who can give us advice?
“We came through an incredible long period with incredible performances, sensational football, wonderful goals, great success – until this point.
“I am not a little bit in doubt about the character of the boys and I would be a real idiot if I would be to be honest because they deserve my trust, my faith and they don’t lose it after a bad game.”
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp says he “never thought it was possible” for his side to equal Manchester City’s record of 18 consecutive Premier League wins.
The league leaders joined City in an English top-flight record with a 3-2 victory over West Ham on Monday.
City won 18 straight games between August and December 2017.
“It’s so special. The numbers are incredible, so difficult. I said we wanted to write our own stories, create our own history,” said Klopp.
“Obviously, the boys took that really seriously and that is all cool but just not too important at the moment.
“We are just in the situation and want to recover and prepare for the next game.”
The last time Liverpool dropped points in the league was in a 1-1 draw with Manchester United on 20 October 2019.
Victory over West Ham at Anfield, where keeper Lukasz Fabianski suffered a nightmare, took Liverpool to within four wins of their first league title in 30 years.
Liverpool took an early lead when Fabianski failed to deal with a routine Georginio Wijnaldum header but David Moyes’ side replied through Issa Diop’s header and then substitute Pablo Fornals swept West Ham into the lead nine minutes after the break.
But Fabianski inexplicably allowed Mohamed Salah’s shot to squirm through his legs in the 68th minute and Sadio Mane turned in Trent Alexander-Arnold’s lob with nine minutes left to complete the comeback.
It means Liverpool are 22 points clear of defending champions City at the top of the table.
“I couldn’t have wished for a better position to go into these last 11 games,” Klopp added. “I never thought it was possible but each one of [the victories are] really difficult.”
What other records have Liverpool got this season?
– Liverpool have won their past 21 home Premier League games, equalling the English top-flight record for consecutive home wins, set by the Reds themselves between January and December 1972 under Bill Shankly.
– Klopp’s side can amass 112 points this season – no title-winning team has achieved that in England.
– This is now Liverpool’s longest unbeaten run, beating the 37 that concluded in 1894.
– Liverpool’s last defeat in the league came at Etihad Stadium against Manchester City on 3 January, 2019. They’ve only dropped 10 points in total since then.
– The last time Liverpool failed to score was in the 0-0 draw at Merseyside rivals Everton on 3 March, 2019.
– The earliest Premier League title win was achieved by Manchester United when they claimed victory in 2000-01 on 14 April. If the Reds keep winning, they could win the title in March.
– Liverpool have the best-ever tally at this stage of the season by a side in any of Europe’s ‘big five’ leagues – England, France, Italy, Germany and Spain.
The German coach was taken back by the news that his side’s rivals will be absent from Europe for the next two seasons.
Jurgen Klopp says he was shocked by the news of Manchester City’s two-year suspension from the Champions League and says he sympathises with coach Pep Guardiola.
City were suspended and fined £25 million ($33m) for breaching Financial Fair Play rules, though the club will appeal against UEFA’s decision.
City said they were “disappointed but not surprised” by the punishment, but Friday’s announcement that Liverpool boss Klopp in shock.
“It was a shock. Complete wow,” Klopp said when asked for his reaction.
“The only thing I can say is about football. What they have done on the football pitch is exceptional. The rest, I don’t know. You believe the people you work with, that’s how it is.
“I really feel for them, Pep and the players, but that is how it is. They can appeal so we will see what happens then. It is obviously serious. But the football they played was exceptional and will always be exceptional.”
While their rivals will be absent from Europe’s premier competition next season, Klopp’s team confirmed their place with a 1-0 win over Norwich on Saturday.
Sadio Mane’s goal just 12 minutes before the end of the clash at Carrow Road stretched their winning streak to 17 top-flight games and their advantage at the top of the table to 25 points.
Klopp was not entirely satisfied with his side’s performance as they gave away too much space against the hosts.
“It was a difficult game for different reasons. The wind, the organisation of the opponent and the way we played first half made it tricky for us,” he told Sky Sports.
“The distance between the line was too big, too early with the long ball, no second player around to collect the second ball. It was not exactly like we wanted to do.
The counter press was not there because we didn’t push up enough, so football. We still had nice situations, good set pieces but not really much more.
“Fabinho coming on was very important for the organisation. Saido was fresh and he helped us to win the game, which was outstanding. I have to watch the goal back but I’m pretty sure it was a fantastic finish.
“I could tell in all the players faces that they weren’t nervous, they were enjoying it, and if one team was going to score it was going to be us. We protected against the counter attack well too. It’s really all about these wonderful football players.
“The gap is so insane, I don’t really understand it. I’m not smart enough. I’ve not had that before. It’s outstanding, it’s so difficult. I go back into the changing room and we chat about the things and then I’m like oh, but congratulations. We won the game, another three points.”
Liverpool setting records in the best-ever start to a season by a club in Europe’s top-five leagues “doesn’t feel special somehow”, says Reds boss Jurgen Klopp.
Roberto Firmino’s first-half goal ensured the European champions opened up a 16-point lead over Leicester City at the top of the table with a game in hand.
But while Liverpool’s peerless start of 20 wins from 21 games has put them on course for a first top-flight title for 30 years, Klopp played down its significance.
“We know about it and it is special but I can’t feel it,” said the German boss.
“When someone gives you a trophy it is done but until then you need to fight. It is only the start. We need to continue because our contenders are so strong.
“Pep (Guardiola, Manchester City boss) will not give up. I will do the same. So far, so really good.”
Klopp’s men have now amassed 104 points across their last 38 Premier League matches, scoring in all 21 of their matches this term.
That record was maintained in London by Brazil forward Firmino, who turned Spurs’ young debutant Japhet Tanganga and beat Paulo Gazzaniga with a sweet left-foot strike to give the visitors a deserved lead.
However Liverpool were then grateful for poor finishing from Jose Mourinho’s side – who were without the injured Harry Kane – in order to record another victory on their seemingly relentless march to a first title in three decades.
Son Heung-Min and substitute Giovani lo Celso missed excellent second-half chances to give Spurs some reward for a performance that improved as the game went on.
But Liverpool, their position at the top strengthened further by Leicester City’s shock home loss to Southampton, held on to increase the sense of formality about the destination of this season’s Premier League trophy.
Jurgen Klopp says he is unsure of the severity of Fabinho’s injury, but says the outcome is “massive” after the midfielder limped off in Liverpool’s 1-1 draw with Napoli.
Fabinho, who has played in all but one of Liverpool’s Premier League games this season, limped off in the first half after team-mate Dejan Lovren attempted to tackle Hirving Lozano.
He was replaced by Georginio Wijnaldum in the 19th minute and is banned for Liverpool’s Premier League fixture against Brighton on Saturday, but Klopp will be keen to have him back for the Merseyside derby next Wednesday.
“The biggest things is the Fabinho injury, that’s massive,” said Klopp.
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