Mohamed Salah’s anger when he was substituted on Thursday in the defeat to Chelsea (1-0) is a symbol of the collapse of the Liverpool, European champion in 2019 and English in 2020, collapsed this season. Why was the empire built by Jurgen Klopp
The German coach replaced the Egyptian striker after an hour of play in the 1-0 defeat against Blauw-Zwart, the fifth consecutive home game for the Liverpool, a line that marks the first time in its history.
10 points from 11 games
Suddenly the Liverpool, Europe’s most fascinating team of the past two years, has gone off the rails. In mid-January, Klopp’s team topped the rankings. Eredivisie, But finally the long list of injuries has come at a heavy price.
Until a shocking 1-0 defeat to Burnley in January, the Reds had not seen a defeat at Anfield since April 2017.
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Two months later they are already in a fight: they are seventh four points behind fourth place, the latter leading to the next Champions League, which is difficult to predict after winning the latter. Eredivisie with 18 discount units.
The current champion has only scored 10 points in his 11 games of the Eredivisie in 2021. Only West Bromwich, Newcastle and Southampton have fared worse since then.
Klopp He was referring to the wrath of Salah, one of the most important parts of the championship team. “If guys are disappointed, that’s no problem. I didn’t see what ‘Mo’ did,” commented the German.
“I could have changed other players, but at that point I didn’t want to risk it,” he added of the change.
Klopp believed that the key to the defeat was that the only shot between his team’s three sticks took place in the 85th minute.
“These games are decided in moments and to recover those moments you have to fight, sometimes on a different level. It’s not about tactics, it’s about being resilient and having a heart,” he added.
“We don’t blame the circumstances. There is only one person who can criticize. That was what I told the boys,” he continued.
Losses on defense, problems on offense
The Liverpool he has suffered the prolonged losses of his center-backs Virgil Van Dijk, head of defense, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip, three absences that have marked the season.
But his trio of stellar attackers; Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mané have lost their luster and effectiveness.
The Reds haven’t opened the scoring at home since December, when Mane faced West Bromwich, a fact that contrasts with last season’s scoring machine and winning streak.
Left back Andy Robertson asked his teammates for more motivation to save the season.
“There are too many heads down when we go down 1-0. We can’t. Football sometimes gets hits,” he said.
“We cannot live in the past. Last season is over. We have not been good enough than him.” Liverpool it should be, ”he acknowledged.
In the absence of 11 games, the Reds will try to change course at home on Sunday against a Fulham (18th) who plays to continue in the Prime Minister