Pranav Nair
Jurgen Klopp slams Manchester United defensive tactics at Anfield
Speaking to BBC (h/t The Daily Mail), Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has hit out at the defensive approach taken by Manchester United at Anfield.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side were under siege for large parts of the game but held on for a point. It saw the Red Devils stay top.
The match saw Liverpool now go three straight Premier League games without scoring a goal, the first time since 2005 that it has happened.
Klopp believes his side tried to eke out the result in the right way. In his opinion, there is nothing worse than a ‘world-class’ side who defend deep and only play on the counter.
“The worst thing you can face in the world, in football, is you play against a side with world-class players and they all defend with all they have, deep in the box and only counter-attack.”
The German believes such a tactic presents a proper challenge. One his team could not overcome on the night.
“It’s really difficult – that’s the biggest challenge.”
While the likes of Luke Shaw and Victor Lindelof both defended well, United also had to thank their lucky stars they got away with a draw. Roberto Firmino had a number of chances that he failed to capitalize on much to our benefit.
Despite Liverpool’s dominance, United had the best chances in the game. However, Paul Pogba, Marcus Rashford, and Bruno Fernandes could not find a way past Alisson Becker in the Liverpool goal.
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Liverpool played Jordan Henderson and Fabinho at the back in what was a makeshift defence. The Reds were there for the taking but United’s safety-first approach played right into their hands.
Thankfully, it did not come back to bite us. United stay top, for now, three points ahead of Liverpool. The biggest winner on the night is Manchester City, who can now go top if they win their game in hand.
