Mourinho disputes idea of Liverpool injury crisis before Anfield visit
José Mourinho has given short shrift to the idea Liverpool are in the throes of an injury crisis. The Tottenham manager, whose team play at Anfield on Wednesday, appeared determined to pile pressure on Liverpool, saying also they would have an unfair advantage because of 2,000 home fans.
Mourinho has sought to portray Spurs as the underdogs in the title race, or “just a pony”, as he has put it, and he warmed to the theme when he highlighted how Jürgen Klopp had been in charge of Liverpool since October 2015 whereas he had taken over at Tottenham in November last year. In other words, Klopp has had time to build, to mould Liverpool as he has wanted and expectations ought to be adjusted accordingly.
Mourinho will not hear of Klopp’s complaints about injuries. Liverpool have lost Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez to long-term problems and his other recognised centre-half, Joël Matip, was forced off in Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Fulham. Matip now faces a fitness test.
Klopp has others out, including James Milner, Thiago Alcântara and Diogo Jota, but Mourinho suggested the situation boiled down to him missing only one first-choice player in Van Dijk.
“Alexander-Arnold is not injured,” Mourinho said. “Matip … I believe he is going to play. Fabinho is not injured. Robertson is not injured. Henderson is not injured. Wijnaldum is not injured. Salah is not injured. Firmino is not injured. Mané is not injured. Van Dijk is injured and Van Dijk is a very good player. But give me Liverpool’s list of injuries and compare that list of injuries with what is the best Liverpool team and then …”
Liverpool remains in tier 2 of coronavirus restrictions, meaning a small number of supporters can attend matches. London has been moved into tier 3. Spurs had benefited from having 2,000 in their ground for the 2-0 win over Arsenal on the Sunday before last, when the capital was in tier 2.
“If you ask me: ‘Is it fair in terms of the competition?’ … I don’t think it’s fair,” Mourinho said. “The team that has home fans has a different intensity, a different temperature, a different atmosphere and that is an advantage.
“But I don’t think we should be sel
fish in the way of saying: ‘I don’t have, [so] you don’t have.’ I don’t have. You have. Lucky you. And unlucky us. I’m not going to complain.”
Spurs have lost only once in the league this season but Mourinho implied it would be better if people focused on the title credentials of teams such as Liverpool, who have built their reputations over a longer period of time.
“We are a good team that works hard but Liverpool is the result of, if I’m not wrong, 1,894 days of work with Jürgen,” Mourinho said. “And we are the work of 390 days. But these 390 days are fake because lots of these days were not even days of work – they were days of quarantine, being at home unable to work. So from almost 2,000 to 300, for us to be able to compete at the level we are doing, I can only give credit to the players.”
Mourinho had said in October that Son Heung-min was ready to extend his contract. But, citing the financial instability driven by Covid, his tone was different when asked for an update.
“How can you sign a new contract with a player?” Mourinho said. “You don’t know what is going to happen next season. You don’t know if you can offer a better contract. I see Sonny signing a new contract here but I don’t even press now because it’s not the right moment.”
Mourinho also said the out-offavour Harry Winks would not be permitted to leave on loan in January.