Fit-again Mane hailed by jubilant boss Klopp
Jurgen Klopp lauded Sadio Mane’s “perfect” injury return as the fit-again striker bagged a vital winner at Norwich.
Senegal attacker Mane climbed off the bench to prod home and seal Liverpool’s 17th straight Premier League win in a scrappy affair at Carrow Road.
The wind and rain of Storm Dennis spoiled any chance of attractive football, and the Reds rode their luck en route to yet another league win.
Boss Klopp’s men are now just one win away from matching Manchester City’s Premier League record run of 18 consecutive victories.
The Reds will now make the trip to Atletico Madrid for Tuesday’s Champions League last 16 first-leg clash, with Klopp tipping Mane to be ready to star again in Spain.
“It helps when you have such quality on the bench to bring on,” said Klopp.
“Yes Sadio could have started today, of course, but I want to have a free decision for Tuesday.
“You don’t think they should play two games in such quick succession.
“The quality of the others is just too big that you have to push somebody through.
“It was perfect for Sadio to have a few minutes, but it looked like he was ready, yes.”
Liverpool flailed for fluency in a challenging first half as the conditions ruined the Carrow Road encounter. Mane removed any frustrations though by plucking Jordan Henderson’s lofted pass out of the air with a fine first touch, before poking past Tim Krul to kill the
Canaries’ stubborn resistance. Mane had hobbled out of Liverpool’s 2-1 win at Wolves on January 23, but was quickly back to his best in Norfolk on a stormy Saturday night.
The horrid conditions always threatened eye-catching moments for the wrong reasons, but both sides just about avoided any kind of catastrophe in an underwhelming first-half.
When Roberto Firmino failed to cut wide for a routine pass from Trent Alexander-arnold to gift Norwich possession, the hosts were visibly emboldened by the levelling weather conditions.
So much so that the Canaries had the chance of the half, with Lukas Rupp no doubt fuming with his misjudgement after the fact. The German midfielder latched on to a ball over the top and found himself one on one with Alisson, only to attempt a pass to Teemu Pukki when he should have struck on goal.
Alisson quickly palmed away the pass to remove the danger, but Rupp should really have scored.
The Reds hoped the change of ends would boost their control of the conditions, but after the interval the mediocrity continued for both teams.
Naby Keita drew a solid save from Krul with a 20-yard drive after patient build-up, before Virgil van Dijk could not muster any power on a header from a corner
Mo Salah spun away from three defenders for some rare space in the area, but Krul parried his low drive – and was then able to deny Keita on the follow-up. Max Aarons’ blushes were spared when his deflection of Andrew Robertson’s cross flew wide of the net
Liverpool kept pressing and pressing, and just when Liverpool were in their closest spot of the day, Mane delivered with a lovely touch to control Henderson’s ball over the top before firing past Krul.
Mere formalities remain before Liverpool seal their first top-flight title since 1990, but manager Klopp admitted his side had struggled against the elements in Norwich.
“It’s easy to talk about the wind and things like that, but on the pitch the boys have to deal with it,” said Klopp.
Norwich’s plight at the foot of the Premier League took another turn for the worse, but boss Daniel Farke is refusing to accept defeat in the Canaries’ battle to avoid the drop.
Sam Byram suffered a nasty-looking hamstring injury, leaving Farke hoping the full-back’s season has not now ended prematurely.
“It’s a muscle fibre problem in his hamstring,” said Farke.“it was very painful for him, he left the ground on crutches so it will be a few weeks that he’s out. I hope the season is not over for him.
“I still believe in my players and I still believe we can achieve a miracle.”