Thursday's LFC news: Southampton, Stevie and saves
Reaction to Liverpool's defeat at Southampton, news of an honour for a Reds legend and much more features in our round-up of Thursday's events at the club.
Read on for a summary of what happened today…
Our top three stories…
It was a typically frank Jürgen Klopp after the final whistle had confirmed a 1-0 defeat in the first leg of the EFL Cup semi-final at St Mary’s.
“The performance, of course, doesn’t feel good, but for the final I would think it’s still open,” said the manager. “We will strike back, we will be a different team, a different side, everything will be different at Anfield. So, for us, it’s still possible to go to Wembley, and that’s the target.”
One positive of the evening was the performance of Loris Karius, who repelled a number of shots before and after Nathan Redmond’s winner.
And after the game, the German struck an upbeat note in an interview with us, explaining how the Reds can turn it around in the second leg at Anfield.
James Milner echoed that sentiment in his post-match reflections, too, while expressing his delight with the return to action of Philippe Coutinho on the south coast.
Elsewhere…
Steven Gerrard is set to be awarded the Freedom of the City of Liverpool, in recognition of his contribution to football and charity work on behalf of disadvantaged children across the country.
“Liverpool is my home city and so to be acknowledged in this way leaves me speechless,” said the Reds icon in reacting to the announcement.
Birthday wishes
Liverpool’s No.23 turned 23 on Thursday, with Emre Can the latest member of the squad to celebrate his birthday.
To mark the occasion, we tested your knowledge of the midfielder’s Reds career so far – can you name the six clubs he has scored against since signing in 2014?
On LFCTV GO…
As previously mentioned, Karius was in excellent form at St Mary’s and produced a number of important saves to ensure the EFL Cup semi-final is still in the balance ahead of the second leg.
Check out two of the goalkeeper’s best stops below.
From social media…
Coming up on Liverpoolfc.com on Friday…
Klopp will speak to the media at Melwood in the afternoon to preview Liverpool’s journey to Old Trafford to face Manchester United in the Premier League on Sunday. We’ll be at the training ground to bring you the breaking news from the press conference.