JURGEN KLOPP ADMITS Liverpool have to “reinvent” themselves after Napoli punished an error-strewn display and inflicted a 4-1 loss that compounded their poor start to the Premier League campaign.
Having have won just two of their opening six Premier League matches, the Reds kicked off their Champions League quest in southern Italy just 102 days from losing last season’s final to Real Madrid.
The trip to Napoli always looked like the toughest test of a group that also includes Ajax and Rangers, but few could have foreseen the error-strewn display that would unfold at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
Piotr Zielinski, Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and substitute Giovanni Simeone scored in a first half that Liverpool were fortunate to end only three goals behind.
Victor Osimhen had seen a first-half penalty saved shortly before Virgil van Dijk denied Khvicha Kvaratskhelia on the line, with Zielinski scoring again at the start of a second half. Luis Diaz responded soon after but it was little consolation for the visitors.
“You don’t think a lot after the game, you react more,” Liverpool boss Klopp said.
We have to kind of reinvent ourselves because basic things were not there. It’s a difficult period, no doubt about that.
“If you’re not playing exceptionally well, you still can defend on a really high level. We should be able to do that.
“The start of the game doesn’t help. If we want to defend better and concede a penalty after three minutes and the next one, obviously you cannot exactly do that. Tonight we were caught in-between.
“But, still, it’s the job to do. That’s what I mean. It’s not that we have to reinvent a new kind of football.
“You always try to improve but in this moment, obviously, everybody would be happy if we could just play similar stuff to what we used to play.
Tonight was the least compact performance I saw for a long, long time from us… and [from] other teams as well.
“Napoli was really good but we made it easy for them because we lost the ball in areas and then the next situation was a counter-attack. No, that’s not how it should be.
A few things are really clear, we have to change that, and the reason why it’s now like this is getting a bit more clearer as well. But I need time for just saying the right things because at the moment it’s not 100% clear.
Klopp went over to Liverpool’s travelling fans to apologise following a “very disappointing night” in Naples.
The Reds will be hoping their stuttering start to the campaign has bottomed out with a loss that even led to a question as to whether he worried about his future given Thomas Tuchel’s sacking by Chelsea earlier in the day.
He replied after the Group A opener: “Not really but who knows? The difference, obviously: they are different kind of owners.
“Our owners are rather calm and expect me to sort the situation and not think that someone else should sort it.
“That’s how they always saw it and on the day when they change their thoughts then they might tell me.”
While wounded Liverpool return home and refocus on Saturday’s home game against Wolves, Napoli fans will celebrate long into the night – even if their head coach is keeping his feet on the ground.
“I think we need to be clear,” Luciano Spalletti said. “Yes, we are very happy, I enjoyed watching this performance first and foremost because Napoli produced a great performance against a top team like Liverpool.
“But I think we need to be clear: we mustn’t get distracted by other situations.
“Above all, you realise just how happy you send the fans home after a game like this. I am very pleased to see the smile on the supporters’ faces but we need to go again.”
What about her run in with Martin Johnson in the 2003 Six Nations? Caused quite a bit if controversy and an apology from the RFU.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/international/2904249.stm
You’re the one dubbing her “Ireland’s newest saint” Pete. The rest of us are simply acknowledging that she did the job with grace, humility and respect. Simple as that.
She certainly helped me over the hurdle of watching england play in croke park. She dragged me kicking and screaming thru quite a few things actually.
My sporting highlight for Mary McAleese was when she took the winning free that won the 2011 all Ireland football final for Dublin…wait a minute she wasn’t playing…actually now that I recall she didn’t play in any team during her presidency. What a load of nonsense this article is. More fool me for reading it. Hup-ya boyo!
All of of her speeches were empty platitudes.
When she opened the GR7 conference in the RDS in 2004 she opened her speech by saying that she knew nothing about Science.
The genius Stephen W. Hawking was sitting directly in front of her.
(Ireland collapsed on her so-called watch.)
Aw FFS, you can’t blame her for that, get real! Also I have a huge amount of respect for someone who acknowledges their ignorance on a subject. You could possibly learn something from her….
Not much soccer there!
Donnacha:
I was complaining about her elevation to be the newest Irish Saint.
She could have done SOME research before making such a speech in front of the cleverest people on earth.
And be criticised for trying to pretend she knows more than she does…. You can’t win in this country. Platitudes come with the role unfortunately, but so do the begrudgers.