Milner has personified Klopp’s start at Liverpool
Tonight Liverpool take on Southampton in the League Cup, in a fixture that is certainly winnable, especially given how the Reds have played away from home under new manager Jurgen Klopp.
However, Southampton are an extremely difficult side to play against, as they proved only a few weeks ago when Ronald Koeman’s men drew 1-1 at Anfield. Just as Liverpool may fancy their chances of reaching yet another cup semi-final, so will the Saints.
Regardless of the clash on the south coast, Liverpool on the whole continue to progress as Klopp settles into the club and the players adapt to his methods.
Already away from Anfield they have hit the ground running with Klopp’s high intensity pressing, or ‘gegenpressing’, in the victories against Chelsea and Manchester City.
At Anfield it has been more of a struggle, yet there appears to be light at the end of the tunnel, with consecutive wins against Bordeaux in the Europa League and Swansea City in the Premier League. As a result, Liverpool have now climbed into the top six and there are murmurings over whether they can challenge for the title given the inconsistent and crazy Premier League season thus far, while the Reds have also qualified for the last 32 in Europe.
So the momentum is there, and everyone will be approaching a game against Liverpool with caution – even fear if in their own backyard.
Key players are returning from injury, including captain Jordan Henderson and Daniel Sturridge (although who knows how long Sturridge will last), others are rediscovering their form (Dejan Lovren has barely put a foot wrong since covering for Mamadou Sakho) and in general Liverpool concede fewer chances to the opposition and are certainly creating chances themselves, especially away from home.
Sturridge has yet to play for Klopp but will be a key player
As long as they can continue to be ruthless in front of goal, Klopp’s men will continue to be successful away from Anfield, therefore a top four finish is within sight if they can improve their home results.
Against Bordeaux, the Reds were a shadow of the team that were so stunning in Manchester, although had it not been for Simon Mignolet they would have enjoyed a comfortable night, as the French side barely threatened.
On Sunday, Liverpool improved and dominated, especially in the first half, as Swansea struggled to stay afloat. Yet they didn’t make the most of their supremacy, rarely fashioning clear-cut chances, although Jordon Ibe should have scored early on.
Consequently, it almost came back to haunt them, as Swansea grew into the game and searched for their own winner. In the end, James Milner was the match-winner as he scored his second penalty in successive games and Liverpool grinded the result out, leaving Garry Monk’s side disappointed.
It may not have been pretty, but both results were wins, and at this early stage of life under Klopp, that’s all that matters for Liverpool.
Better teams will punish the lack of penetration from the Reds at Anfield with their own counter-attacks, but the Reds have time to improve before they face all the big guns in the second half of the season at home, having come through their extreme away stretch to start the campaign.
Of course, everyone prefers the fluid, fearless, fantastic performances that were evident at Stamford Bridge and the Etihad but no team can play at that level every week.
What Liverpool fans want is to see that their team are able to produce that sort of performance at home, which will rely on plenty of movement, high pressing, different options (Roberto Firmino’s guile, Christian Benteke’s strength, Sturridge’s pace) and simply playing well – including removing poor touches of the ball, such as Ibe’s costly example versus Swansea.
Jurgen has turned Liverpool’s fortunes around but must find a way to succeed at Anfield
However, patience is needed – there’s no doubting Klopp’s tactical astuteness and man-management, and the Reds will work out a style of play that works at Anfield, while a couple of January signings could be the missing key that unlocks the home door. A natural winger may be a target to provide more width at home, as Ibe is the only current winger in the squad.
We are still only a couple of months into Klopp’s reign at Liverpool, barely into his first season. Any trophy or a top four finish would be magical, but working out a plan of attack at Anfield will be crucial if the Reds want to enhance their prospects for the future.
In the meantime, if they can continue to dig out wins with the odd brilliant stand-out performance, then Liverpool will set themselves up well for the rest of the season.
