Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp may have been on the other side of the world, but he kept his eye on the very youthful Reds side that turned out in the League Cup.
Some fans joke that the boss doesn’t care about the second-rate domestic trophy in England, and they may be right, but he definitely does care about his players.
The boss made sure to get in touch with stand-in first team manager Neil Critchley – who was definitely the most appropriate person to coach the youthful line up – at half time to offer some words.
Even though the young Reds were 4-0 down, the German told them to keep doing what they were doing and to stay brave – as per Standard reporter David Lynch.
Neil Critchley reveals that Jurgen Klopp sent a half-time message telling the players "to keep doing what they were doing, keep being brave".
— David Lynch (@dmlynch) December 17, 2019
And Klopp was absolutely spot on to say that to the players as the score line did not appropriately represent how well the young Liverpool players did.
The eventual result of 5-0 to Villa was harsh on the lads; they played so much better than that and a score line of 4-2 to the hosts would have been more suitable.
Still, the players should be proud of themselves, they were up against Premier League opposition and they put in a performance that suggest we have a bright future.