ReactionJürgen Klopp press conference: 'Special' Luton analysis, squad resolve and injuries
Jürgen Klopp hailed the spirit and determination his Liverpool side showed amid difficult circumstances to defeat Luton Town 4-1 in the Premier League.
A Reds group afflicted by a series of injuries to established players fell behind to a Hatters opener from Chiedozie Ogbene at Anfield on Wednesday night.
Luton held that lead until half-time, but Klopp’s men stormed back after the interval and took all three points through goals from Virgil van Dijk, Cody Gakpo, Luis Diaz and Harvey Elliott.
Read the manager’s reaction at his post-match press conference in full below…
On Liverpool’s fightback and the manner of the win...
The difference between talking to you after a game we lost and a game after we’ve won, you cannot imagine how big that is. Tonight is one of these nights where it is difficult to stop talking about it, to be honest. It just wants to come out of me... I am so happy with the performance, I am so happy with so many things we saw tonight. Before the game, nobody knew how the boys will take on this challenge – because it is a challenge.
Then we started the game in a good way, I liked it, but then I think we missed firstly a chance from Lucho [Diaz] and they scored then. They had a moment before already, twice we were struggling a bit with their left side. Concede the goal and then you could see immediately we were in a rush from that moment on. Not in build-up, or these kind of things – we still found the right spaces – but in the final third we were in a rush. There were so many finishes and they all didn’t look great, it was not like the goalie had to make a perfect save. I told the boys at half-time, if he wants to keep the ball out of the net he has to fly to the far corner and get there with the fingertips and not just pick them up.
For that we had to ignore the fact that we were 1-0 down, to ignore the fact we missed chances and to use the things which were good in the first half already – and improve the counter-press. For that we had to play in the right spaces, because counter-press only makes sense if you win the balls back in good areas. That’s what the boys did and the second half was a thunderstorm. Wow. Wow. In the first half, it was like... I know you tend to make headlines with these things, [but] we all had to get used to the crowd as well first half. The boys knew the last passes were not great; if you hear it then on top of that, that doesn’t help. That didn’t help. So we had to make sure that we all start new – and second half, and not that I needed proof, but what this place together with a bunch of fantastic footballers is able to create is so special. Oh my God. This second half for us, we were undeniable. I loved that against a strong opponent.
I said it before the game and I said it after the game, the job Rob [Edwards] is doing is absolutely outstanding. Tonight everything was prepared. After being 1-0 down, we had to play, we don’t finish, missing strikers, and they [could] score the 2-0 from a counter-attack or a set-piece. That was all prepared – but the boys made sure that didn’t happen with an exceptional performance.
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On whether he made changes during half-time...
Tactically, no. No, it was not necessary. I asked the boys to delete it. The few things that brought us into a rush, delete it. That’s how it is. Let’s start new; if we win the second half 1-0, we get a point. If we win 2-0, we win the game, so there was a massive chance. We all saw that this season already that we can turn things [after] the first half maybe where the game looks slightly different. How I said, I asked the boys, ‘Did you like the game? Because your faces don’t look like?’ If you would have asked the crowd they would have said, ‘Nah, didn’t like it.’ Just only the coaches liked it because it was a good basis for the things we needed in the second half.
So, no, we didn’t change that – we just asked the boys to be calmer in these moments so that we can finish off the situations up to our standards, our technical standards. That’s what I saw. Then the boys were all of a sudden really awake. I think Cody’s goal, exceptional, quick thinking, bam, a grenade into the box and he puts his head there. Just wonderful, everything. Virgil... all the goals were fantastic, obviously. I liked them all. So, a really, really good game. A really special, special game.
On how satisfying the victory was given all the circumstances surrounding the game…
I will mention this game from now on quite a few times, to be honest. I promised my team a few months ago probably I will never mention or use the Barcelona game [in 2019] again as an example – and I used it today again, so I broke my promise. Just because before the game it was kind of similar: many players missing, stuff like this. If the team that played that night against Barcelona would have stuck to the knowledge of who was missing...
We went through the goals and I can tell all the goals. It was a very average pass from Joel Matip up front, Jordi Alba wants to put the ball back to his defender and Sadio [Mane] smells the situation. Jordan Henderson was our super leader, so many good things in his football, but he is not famous for dribbling in the box; he did that, left-foot shot, Divock Origi scored a goal even [the press officer] would have scored with. The next goal, Trent [Alexander-Arnold] loses the ball in their feet, but wins it back with counter-press, puts the ball in the box and Gini Wijnaldum arrives there, only two players in the box [but] it was just the conviction to go for it. The next goal, the right winger is on the left side, gets the ball from the midfielder who now plays left-back, crosses the ball and heads the ball in. The fourth goal is a genius moment and a quick set-piece. I don’t think we had much more chances that night, or shots on target.
This team that time ignored the fact who was missing and I want us to ignore the fact [of] who is missing. That’s difficult because the public got the knowledge of the whole amount of players missing only tonight. It’s like, ‘Oh…’ I needed a few minutes to process it when I got all the news but from the moment on when you know how you can deal with it, how you can sort it for this game now, it feels really good. That’s what I wanted the boys to show and this is an example tonight, this is now their Barcelona, [it] was against Luton – a difficult situation, plenty of reasons to give up in moments, ‘Yeah, not tonight.’ And I saw only a super group fighting. If you don’t limit yourself with bad thoughts, you can fly. And that’s what the boys did.
On any updates on injuries within the squad…
No. I don’t even know if these boys can play again, to be honest. The situation is not great, absolutely not, we don’t have to make that now nicer than it is. I’m so happy that all the kids came on and played, Dannsy [Jayden Danns] said 50 times, ‘Thank you, boss!’ I’m so happy that I could give him that opportunity, the boys deserve it. But obviously for us there are now a lot of super-important games coming up, and we don’t know, we go day by day. I cannot say anything about it and I don’t know. But after Brentford I had no clue the situation would be like it was now. So, let’s see. There’s one phrase that stands: as long as we have 11, we will go for it. That’s all I can promise.
On Elliott’s performance on his 100th appearance for the club…
Top performance. And Harvey is a top player; 100 games for Liverpool FC in not the worst period of the club’s history, where you cannot afford players who [just] play the position, that’s a proper sign. But tonight he had not a great first half. There was a pass with Lucho; when I saw he wants to play the pass instead of maybe he can go in a one-on-one situation, there was here a finish a bit late...
But the reaction in the second half is the main difference, that’s the thing. That made this performance the performance, and I’m so happy for him. I don’t lose patience in these moments, I know that it’s a challenge for young boys. When everything is great, they are super talents. When things don’t go well, you have to show up. And that’s what he’s learning more and more. And with 100 games under his belt, we all know he will definitely play another 100, 200, 300 – if you ask him, 500 – for this club.