Jurgen Klopp thinks Liverpool’s current habit of conceding goals is more to do with the team in general than individual errors.
We let in four at Bournemouth to throw away three points and then two more at home to West Ham on the weekend. None of the goals we let in were the type you say: ‘That’s too good,’ they were mainly sloppy – which made the fact we completely dominated both these matches all the more frustrating.
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Liverpool’s boss though thinks overall his side defends well, as we concede the least shots on goal per match (7.8) of any Premier League side. However, we’ve let in 20 – nine more than the likes of Chelsea and Spurs.
According to the boss, time on the training field and not expensive new defenders will fix the problems.
“OK, we had the situation at Bournemouth. That was bad defending. People said: ‘If we had [Joël] Matip …’ So Matip would have been able to run all around for that fourth goal? It was a general feeling. We didn’t feel comfortable. We didn’t push up. But it only helps if we all do better,” Klopp told the Guardian.
“If you have a goalkeeper and you let them shoot from everywhere, it doesn’t change. We have to avoid this as a team and we do avoid it very often. That is why when people speak about defensive problems, I knew already we are defending well. People always ask for new players but my job is to work with the players we have and do it consistently well, and that is what we do. When I say we did not have the right balance in the game, defending starts in the offensive situation.”
Liverpool take on ‘Boro at the Riverside this evening, and the spotlight will be heavily on Klopp’s backline, including keeper Loris Karius. He’s expected to select the young German, who badly needs a positive performance after his nightmare fortnight.