It seems that having a 25-point lead in the Premier League and winning the Champions League is not enough to satisfy Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, judging by comments that he recently made.
Speaking exclusively to Jamie Carragher and David Jones on Sky Sports‘ The Football Show, the 52-year-old stated his belief that there remains plenty of scope for improvement at Anfield but is pleased with the emergence of young talents at the club.
Klopp said: “We will not change, that’s the first thing, but whether we will be successful depends on what other clubs are doing as well because they have all the chance to improve things, do things better. So I have no clue what the future will hold for us.
“But we will not change, this team is not the finished article, and we have a lot of space for improvement, and we work on that. We have fresh blood internally coming through. We can improve with this team, which is great.”
From a Liverpool perspective, it is refreshing to hear that Klopp is not overly content with the Reds’ current standing, even with the prospect of a first league title in 30 years looming large in a season where his team have strung together extraordinary winning sequences.
His comments about the team not being “the finished article” make perfect sense considering the slump they had endured prior to the coronavirus-enforced stoppage of football last month. Liverpool have lost four of the last six matches that they have played and trailed in the other two (against West Ham and Bournemouth) before coming from behind to win. That rocky patch saw them lose their unbeaten Premier League status as well as relinquish their grip on the Champions League crown and make a familiar early exit from the FA Cup.
Even their astounding Premier League form perhaps gives a misleadingly glowing allure. That Liverpool have only dropped five points from a possible 87 so far is undoubtedly an astonishing achievement, although the notion that they have freewheeled their way to a 25-point lead at the top would be incorrect – 14 of their 27 wins in the league have been by a single goal. By comparison, only nine of Manchester City’s 32 league wins last season were by a one-goal margin, with five wins by five goals or more. In 2017/18, when Pep Guardiola’s side racked up 100 points, eight of their 32 wins were by four goals or more, compared to 10 one-goal victories.
While Klopp is right to claim that Liverpool can still aim for even better, he is also correct in alluding positively to the plethora of young talent emerging from the academy ranks. This season has seen the likes of Curtis Jones, Neco Williams and Harvey Elliott making an impression at first team level, with Jones scoring a fantastic winning goal against Everton in the FA Cup and Williams providing key assists in cup games against Arsenal and Shrewsbury. The Reds also have the likes of Rhian Brewster playing and scoring regularly on loan at Swansea, so Klopp’s remarks about potential first team squad additions from within are justifiable.
Even with Liverpool being crowned European and world champions in the last 12 months and seemingly nailed-on to add the Premier League title, Klopp is honest enough to realise that resting on their laurels will likely see the Reds being caught up and overtaken by their rivals. That type of hunger should hopefully continue to drive Liverpool on to continued rather than fleeting success.
Liverpool fans, do you agree with Klopp’s view that the Reds can still improve significantly? Have your say by commenting below!
