Jurgen Klopp Says Liverpool “plays not as a team” in warning over loss to Napoli
Jurgen Klopp Says Liverpool “plays not as a team” Liverpool’s Champions League campaign began with a 4-1 loss to Napoli; Klopp says his team are not playing as a team and needs to reinvent themselves in order to get back on top.
Credit: Skysports
Jurgen Klopp says Liverpool are getting off to a shaky start in the Champions League up against Napoli, which is why he’s challenged his players to “reinvent” themselves quickly.
The Reds were on the defense in their Champions League group stage match as they found themselves trailing 0-3 at halftime. Piotr Zielinski took a penalty just seconds in and Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and Giovanni Simeone then scored their first goals of the game.
Despite conceding a penalty as Victor Osimhen missed the first one, Alisson Becker saved this one and Napoli found the fourth goal swiftly after halftime. Luis Diaz scored just minutes before an inevitable shutout but that was all Liverpool managed to score this time. Despite winning two of their seven matches in the league and Champions League, Liverpool have been poor in many aspects, Klopp has revealed.
Klopp was really apologetic with his comments directed at Liverpool, as he explained that Napoli played better and the team didn’t respond well to their play. He explained that the two penalties that happened came from a little bit of luck. The next two goals were earned and Liverpool just weren’t good enough defensively or in the last moment.
Liverpool looked bad in their match against Milan having conceded three goals with Alisson in goal. There were clear signs of anxiety on the pitch that showed how low morale was as a result of some players not performing to the top standard. It is a tough defeat but Liverpool did qualify for the next stage and Klopp says Wolves should be laughing at the prospect of playing them.
We need to reinvent ourselves. We are lacking in many aspects, not just our ability to win matches but also striving for more fun during the Premier League and Champions League seasons. We have a lot of work to do, starting on the pitch, with a new setup that sets us apart from everyone else.
We play in three days against Wolves, if they see how we played tonight they would laugh and say it was the perfect moment. The new Liverpool manager responded to Thomas Tuchel’s sacking on Wednesday night as Chelsea are one point ahead of Liverpool.
Klopp is not expecting to be under intense pressure in similar way to Tuchel, despite Chelsea and Liverpool having tough starts to the season. He has support from the club’s hierarchy.
When asked how he felt about his future after the surprising managerial firing earlier in the day, Klopp said, “Not really, but who knows.” The difference is that Chelsea’s owners are financial and pressure-filled while Liverpool FC’s owners are calm and expect him to sort it out.
Despite Champions League wins, Liverpool’s German coaches are struggling in the Premier League. While Thomas Tuchel’s troubles with Chelsea have ended, Jurgen Klopp is still finding it challenging. Liverpool suffered a 4-1 defeat to Napoli.
Napoli lost the Champions League in a 1-0 match. Alisson ended result by saving a penalty and from potential points from Napoli’s substitutes late on.
There were many errors made in individual matches. Joe Gomez was at fault for three occasions and awarded a penalty in the second half. Trent Alexander-Arnold has shown that he does not care about following players, only tracking them. Virgil Van Dijk looked off-kilter at times, which may have been because of fatigue.
Andy Robertson, though, summed up the problem facing his fellow defenders by speaking after the match saying “You cannot come to a place like this and not be compact.”
Making a mockery of Klopp’s high defensive line, it is the lack of pressure on the ball that leaves his problems more complex than just switching his personnel.
Liverpool is the ultimate machine team. They rely on their system as much as they do individual talent. For them, the system is integral to their talents. When things break down and the machines fall apart, that’s when things fall apart for them.
Klopp saw his team playing too wide and thinks that they may be better with a midfielder like Elliott in addition to Milner. Milner is turning 37, but he is still trying to provide the engine for Liverpool’s midfield.
But this is only after their side started to gain strength from their fit-again, emerging forward Thiago. That makes the team stronger and better.
With his injury healing, Diogo Jota will take time to find his best form. His ability to go in search of the ball high up the pitch is missed and having Sadio Mane’s absence, it means Liverpool miss that dimension more than they would like.
With a congested calendar, the challenge now is to fix their problems on the fly. Wolves visit Anfield on Saturday before Ajax come to visit on Tuesday. Identifying the problem is easy for Klopp. The correction must come quickly so those are not talking about a crisis.