Liverpool came into March alive on all fronts. Leader of the Premier, champion of the Carabao and in the quarterfinals of the FA Cup and the Europa League. “I want to win everything,” Jürgen Klopp confessed that in his last months at Anfield he aspired to ‘poker’.
Neither the 13 injuries! that they accumulated at the end of February weighed down a bloc that won, won and won again. However, everything started to go wrong a month ago. The elimination (4-3) in the FA Cup quarterfinals against Manchester United left them without a ‘club’. And in the last week, the fall of the ‘reds’ has been hard.
“We lost in the FA Cup and it was a catastrophe because we were good and we were eliminated. We expected a reaction against Atalanta after losing points in the Premier against United and it was of no use. And against Crystal Palace we had many chances but it wasn’t enough,” Klopp confessed after the defeat (0-1) at home against the ‘Eagles’. Another blow at Anfield three days after being beaten (0-3) against Atalanta in the first leg of the Europa League quarterfinals.
Liverpool 0-3 Atalanta: summary and goals | Europa League (quarterfinals, first leg)
In one week, Liverpool’s season has been turned upside down. The five points that have escaped them in the last two days against ‘ManU.’ (2-2) and Palace have made them fall from the leadership they had with two points over Arsenal and three over Manchester City. They are now third, two behind Pep Guardiola’s team. Two slips to which the European catastrophe against the ‘Dea’ has been added. There is still the return leg… but recovering from 0-3 is a titanic task. The doors to the Europa League semi-finals are almost closed. They need a miracle in Bergamo.
Two duels in a row to zero
Their two consecutive games without scoring at Anfield are an unprecedented feat for the Reds whose season is dragging on forever. They have already played 51 games! 23 in 2024. Extreme wear and tear that has Liverpool exhausted. To the limit. “If we played like we did in the first half, why should we win the Premier? “The criticism at this time is reasonable, fair.”reflected Klopp, who explained some of the reds’ black points.
“The problems have been different from one game to another. We conceded goals too easily and we were unlucky. In other duels, with these occasions, we could have won 4-1, but football doesn’t work like that“, pointed out the German. The ‘Pool’ has gone nine games without keeping a clean sheet. And in the rival area, they are not right. Against Palace they did not score when their ‘expected goals’ were 2.87!, a record of the tournament. They could not complete one of their usual comebacks that have led them to win 26 points in this Premier League after losing.
The problems have been different from one game to another
Jürgen Klopp, Liverpool manager
Furthermore, the departure from the infirmary of their key players (Salah, Szoboszlai, Núñez, Gravenberch, Endo, Jones, Alexander-Arnold, Alisson…) has coincided with their worst streak. “Some players have played a lot but others returned from injury and are getting into the rhythm. We just have to make sure we don’t think about where we come from“said Klopp, who spoke about how to turn the situation around: “As a coach, it is not easy to find explanations. For us, the solution is to be together on the field. We have rhythm, momentum… We are a difficult opponent and we have to find a way to win again.” They still have time.
2024-04-15 13:44:23
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