OUR man in the know on Merseyside takes an in-depth look at Liverpool and where they are going under Jurgen Klopp.
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| Jurgen Klopp has started well as Liverpool boss, despite losing his last four games |
Season so far?
Liverpool’s owners, Fenway Sports Group, always hoped to be heading into the New Year with a manager who had galvanised team and supporters alike and was looking to push on in the second half of the campaign.
Firing Brendan Rodgers three months after he spent £80million was not part of the blueprint, however. Liverpool were not in crisis when Rodgers was sacked in the aftermath of a 1-1 draw with Everton in October, but he had simply run out of credit with a hierarchy who lost faith in where he would take the club.
Enter Jurgen Klopp. He cut short a sabbatical having left Borussia Dortmund, where he pieced together an impressive CV, and immediately made an impression on and off the pitch with his glass-half-full approach. Four games without a win have checked momentum, but that the focus is on the players not the manager speaks volumes for Klopp’s standing.
Highlight?
The 4-1 destruction of Manchester City was Klopp’s vision for Liverpool crammed into 90-minutes. To see the front three of Coutinho-Firmino-Lallana in perfect unison, pressing aggressively high up the pitch and displaying cool heads, was a sight to behold. Jamie Carragher’s description of them as the “red arrows” was fitting.
The standard was set that evening at the Etihad, though it has seldom been adhered to since.
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| Liverpool's highlight of the season so far was the 4-1 win at Manchester City |
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| Jurgen Klopp will be looking for a solution to Daniel Sturridge's injury problems |
Lowlight?
The failure to compete at Manchester United back in September, when Liverpool lost 3-1, was the beginning of the end for Rodgers and such an insipid, anaemic performance at the home of bitter rivals can never be tolerated. Yet the manner of the defeat to Watford last weekend was in many ways just as chastening.
This was Liverpool with a full week to prepare under Klopp (although he chose to give the players some days off) only for his team to surrender against opponents willing to get in their faces.
Given it had happened in the previous away game at Newcastle, Liverpool should have been steeled for something similar regardless of Adam Bogdan’s early mistake. It was proof, if required, that Klopp really isn’t a miracle worker and he labelled it as the worst day of his short reign.
New Year hopes
Liverpool’s fortunes remain intrinsically linked to Daniel Sturridge’s fitness, so a solution to his numerous issues will be top of Klopp’s wish-list. If Sturridge can put a run of games together, then top four has to be a realistic target given the inadequacies of many of their rivals.
The priority though? Liverpool remain in three cup competitions and it is time for them to win silverware once again. Lifting a trophy would be more important to the team’s long-term development and fall in line with what the club’s philosophy used to be.
Transfer plans
There are unlikely to be big moves in January as Klopp continues to work out his squad’s strengths and weaknesses. He appears to genuinely believe Liverpool boast quality, but the mental weaknesses exposed against Watford will alarm him.
Red Star Belgrade youngster Mark Grujic will be loaned back to the Serbian club if his dad gives the go-ahead to a £5.1m deal, while Schalke’s Joel Matip is being lined up for next summer when he is out of contract. I would expect more expensive transfers to be done in the summer when Matip’s team-mate, Leroy Sane, could be a target.
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