Liverpool Need All of Their Midfield Options, Insists Jurgen Klopp
Liverpool have enjoyed a strong start to the season, with back-to-back 3-1 wins over Wolves and West Ham keeping them unbeaten in seven games. Sunday’s victory over West Ham saw Ryan Gravenberch make his Anfield debut, while Thiago and Trent Alexander-Arnold were missing from the squad.
Jurgen Klopp was asked in his post-match interview with BBC Sport if he saw the abundance of midfield options as a “luxury,” but he dismissed it as necessary.
“Luxury…it’s what we need,” he replied. “There are four competitions out there, and believe me, I spoke [with David Moyes] about that as well, David had that last year, constantly Thursday-Sunday is a tough one.
“If you play Champions League you might play Tuesday from time to time and then Saturday or Sunday, whatever. The difference here now is 100 percent clear, between Thursday and Sunday you don’t have a lot of time. We need to get used to that. For that we need a full squad, definitely.”
Klopp praised the impact of the players who came off the bench, including Diogo Jota, Cody Gakpo, Wataru Endo, Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai and Curtis Jones. Szoboszlai has now started all six Premier League games this season, while Mac Allister, Elliott and Jones have largely shared the minutes for various reasons.
Klopp added that he will need the likes of Endo, Gravenberch, Thiago and Stefan Bajcetic in the weeks and months to come. Liverpool’s next game is against Leicester in the League Cup, and Klopp is likely to rotate heavily again.
The manager believes that having a full squad is paramount if Liverpool plan to go all the way on four fronts. He said: “It happened now a few times and we have to keep that until the end of the season.”
With Ryan Gravenberch making his Anfield debut and Thiago still on his way back, Jurgen Klopp insists Liverpool need all of their midfield options if they are to compete on four fronts this season. The Reds have enjoyed a strong start to the season, with back-to-back 3-1 wins over Wolves and West Ham keeping them unbeaten in seven games.
Klopp praised the impact of the players who came off the bench, including Diogo Jota, Cody Gakpo, Wataru Endo, Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai and Curtis Jones. Szoboszlai has now started all six Premier League games this season, while Mac Allister, Elliott and Jones have largely shared the minutes for various reasons.
The manager believes that having a full squad is paramount if Liverpool plan to go all the way on four fronts. He said: “It happened now a few times and we have to keep that until the end of the season.”
Klopp added that he will need the likes of Endo, Gravenberch, Thiago and Stefan Bajcetic in the weeks and months to come. Liverpool’s next game is against Leicester in the League Cup, and Klopp is likely to rotate heavily again.
The Reds remain unbeaten after a week of back-to-back 3-1 wins, following up another of the same scoreline against Wolves by overcoming LASK and West Ham. Sunday brought a comfortable victory over West Ham to make it seven games without defeat this season, keeping up the pressure at the top of the Premier League.
Klopp believes that having a full squad is essential if Liverpool are to compete on four fronts this season. With Ryan Gravenberch making his Anfield debut and Thiago still on his way back, Jurgen Klopp insists Liverpool need all of their midfield options if they are to achieve success this season.