Klopp battle mode key to title hopes

THE routine is the same for every game. When Liverpool’s players run out to warm up, Jurgen Klopp will turn his back on them and look the other way. Rather than watch his team go through their final drills, he studies the opposition to glean any last snippets of information. The routine, though, runs deeper. Klopp, shortly before kick-off, will leave the dressing room and wait in the tunnel to watch the other team line up, and at 6ft 4in he is an imposing presence. The message behind it all is clear: this is the German’s way of letting everyone know his team are ready for what is about to come. It is Klopp adopting battle mode. In extreme circumstances, it can lead to the kind of reactions that you saw in the 0-0 draw with Manchester United when nobody seemed safe from a verbal explosion. Klopp (right) looked like he had taken things too far at Old Trafford, when he substituted captain Jordan Henderson, resulting in a squabble between them. Yet Liverpool’s 5-0 demolition of Watford on Wednesday felt a direct consequence of the decisions Klopp made in Manchester. Trent Alexander-Arnold was left out for fitness reasons at Old Trafford but came back to provide three assists. And Mo Salah was substituted when Liverpool needed a goal but he provided an unplayable response against Watford. Would it have been possible without escaping unscathed from the war of attrition against their bitter rivals? No. Defeat by United would have punctured belief and enabled Manchester City to poke their noses in front at the top of the table but, critically, Liverpool have control of their destiny. When asked about the pressure City are applying from behind, Klopp said: ‘We only need to play football and to win games. Then we will see what happens.’