KLOPP DOESN’T NEED GLASSES TO SEE FAULTS IN REDS’ TEAM
IT’S hard to turn a corner when you cannot defend one and Jurgen Klopp is increasingly aware that his rearguard is holding Liverpool back at the moment. Even in victory and without his glasses, which were smashed in the extraordinary madness at Norwich, the German could spot a glaring problem — his team simply cannot deal with set-pieces. Why, Klopp asked, are they finding it so hard? Then, in his usual style, he started acting out what he meant, driving his head at imaginary balls in a Norfolk corridor. ‘I was an under-average player,’ he said. ‘But if I was good at something it was defending set-plays. It’s not that difficult.’ The evidence of Liverpool’s blindspot is piling up and Klopp, clearly, is ready to pop. Exeter scored direct from a corner in their initial FA Cup tie, Arsenal’s second in their 3-3 thriller at Anfield was from a corner, and likewise a failure to mark Marouane Fellaini at a set-piece cost Liverpool the game against Manchester United a week ago. In among the brilliant shambles of Saturday’s fixture, Liverpool gifted Norwich their first equaliser because they could not deal with a corner. The numbers are painting their own picture: Liverpool have the worst record in the Premier League for goals conceded from corners (eight) and the third worst for defending set-pieces in general (13). Those 13 goals account for 40 per cent of all league goals they have conceded, which itself is the highest proportion in the division. Klopp is convinced his team are improving in dealing with the initial crosses that come in, but they are yet to find a way to then deal with the second phases of attacks, as in the case of Norwich’s first goal, scored by Dieumerci Mbokani, who had been played onside by Mamadou Sakho. ‘It’s like a self-fulfilling prophecy,’ said Klopp. ‘Everybody’s talking about it, we’re thinking about it. You see in a situation where you have “cross, pap, good”. Then, “OK, second ball, second ball, oh my God”. That’s the situation. ‘We know how to defend but we have to do it now. It’s very important that we strike back.’ Major defensive errors, at set-pieces or otherwise, were obvious in all four of the goals they gave away. But it is also a measure of how well Liverpool attacked that they won a game in which they trailed 3-1. Roberto Firmino scored their opener, assisted the goal for Jordan Henderson that made it 3-2, and then netted again for 3-3. His selection ahead of Christian Benteke against a team with its own major vulnerabilities to crosses would indicate, once again, that there is no long-term future for the Belgian at Anfield. Firmino, however, is starting to look like the player Liverpool valued at £29million in the summer. His two goals, added to the pair he got against Arsenal 10 days earlier, have given some life to his season. With a first league win in four, the question is whether Liverpool have turned a corner. Klopp said: ‘That’s what we all hope. But I feel nearly everything is a turning point. I can go tomorrow to the toilet and it’s a turning point.’ Norwich manager Alex Neil desperately needs a turning point of his own after a third straight defeat brought his side ever closer to the bottom three. Neil said: ‘You don’t pick up home wins, you start looking below you. Simple as that.’