Jurgen Klopp says it’s his fault his players were put in a dangerous situation last night against a riled up Sevilla – because he picks the friendly opponents.
We’d suggest it had far more to do with the Germans’s opposite number Julen Lopetegui not being able to control his players, one of whom was sent off for a horror-challenge on Yasser Larouci, and two of which escaped red only because it was competitive.
“I can blame nobody for our opponents because I planned the pre-season,” Klopp said, reported in BBC Sport.
“It’s pretty rare that we play the best football on the first matchday, but we want results – and that is what we are working on.”
The performance in Boston was shoddy, but there’s plenty of reasons for this. Firstly, it was insanely hot. Secondly, it was a pre-season fixture on a day where Liverpool had already had a full training session – and thirdly – all our best attackers didn’t feature.
It wasn’t nice to watch, especially after losing to Borussia Dortmund – but in reality – nobody remembers or cares about friendlies once the season starts for real.
The key thing now is for players to increase their sharpness, stay fit and for the likes of Alisson, Roberto Firmino, Mo Salah, Sadio Mane, Naby Keita and Xherdan Shaqiri to return.