KLOPP: TIME TO STEP UP
Boss tells Reds to prove worth
JURGEN KLOPP cannot wait for the new campaign so he can put the misery of last season behind him and savour the spectacle of full stadiums.
The Liverpool manager admits “there’s not a lot of good things to say about last season” but wants his side to use that painful experience to drive themselves on again.
And he has challenged his fringe players to prove they can be good enough to stop him dipping further into the summer transfer market.
Klopp said: “There’s not a lot of good things to say. We got through a really tough period to finish third, and that was incredible. It made us 100 percent stronger.
“So we have so much movement in the squad, if they want. There are so many players who could step up. For different reasons, last season was maybe not theirs but that doesn’t mean from now on it will always go backwards.”
For Klopp, that means players forcing their way into his plans during the 28-day training camp in Austria that began this week – the longest in Liverpool’s history.
Klopp’s sole summer signing has been £35million centre-half Ibrahima Konate, above, from RB Leipzig.
Now he wants youngsters such as Curtis Jones, 20, Harvey Elliott, 18, Rhys Williams, 20, and 17-year-old attacking midfielder Mateusz Musialowski, along with seasoned professionals Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Xherdan Shaqiri and Takumi Minamino to show he does not need to spend more.
“They were close to the first team but didn’t play often enough,” said Klopp. “So, the door is open. So come on, take the chance and play the best football you are able to do and then we immediately get options. It’s always like having new signings.
“If somebody wants to leave, he can come to me and can tell me and then I’ll think about it. Nobody came so far, so obviously no rush from the players’ side as well.The market, anyway, is really calm at the moment.
“Let’s see what happens, but everybody has the chance to impress me and I hope they do.” Liverpool suffered six league defeats at Anfield last season for the first time since 1953-54, but Klopp believes his team will be a different proposition with supporters back in the stadium.
He says it was one of the best moments of his life when fans were back for the final game.
“The 10,000 against Crystal Palace felt like 150,000,” added Klopp. “I can’t wait to have this.”