Jurgen Klopp admitted that Liverpool had a “bad start” but explained how his half-time alterations led to the Reds’ Premier League win over Bournemouth.
At half time, many were predicting a scoreline in which a singular goal would separate the sides. In the end, Liverpool ran out comfortable 4-0 winners and pulled five points clear at the top of the Premier League.
This season, second-half turnarounds have become familiar for Liverpool supporters and, while we didn’t have to endure the tension of a comeback, there were still a few noticeable changes made to improve things.
Jurgen Klopp spoke on Sky Sports about what happened after the break to induce Liverpool’s goals, and admitted the Reds had a “bad start.”
"Sport science didn't give me any hints" ?
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp says he is still learning how to deal with injuries in the squad ? pic.twitter.com/InQB6FfenY
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 21, 2024
“We were not flexible enough, our left side was completely static. I told the boys at half time ‘Good news, we were great and it’s still 0-0, so let’s be great.'”
Liverpool didn’t make any substitutions until the 66th minute, but the boss explained what switches were made.
“We had to change at half time and that changed the game obviously, the dynamic of the game, then we scored the goal then obviously everything is different,” Klopp added.
“We changed formation and all of a sudden we were much more fluent and the support for the front line was much better,” Klopp added.
“Darwin (Nunez) just played left wing and was just waiting for balls in behind and stuff like this. For all the defensive work, pretty exhausted, pretty early, then it was clear that we had to change.”
Diogo Jota scored twice in the second half, bringing his tally to four goals in his last three Premier League games since returning from injury.
Klopp also spoke about how he got him more involved after the break, saying: “We think about ‘Does he go inside, what are we doing?’ Then it was clear that we bring Diogo (Jota) on the right side because he’s just a really smart player.
“On that wing, we had to play with the striker more inside – that suits Diogo as well, and that’s why we made the changes.”
Later, in his press conference, he added: “We had the opposite of a good start, we put ourselves under pressure with the first ball pretty much.”
“Half time, we had two or three situations where we showed the boys how it should look, and it helped a little bit with the position change of the front three.
“But, in general, we showed them where the spaces are, where we could play, and how important it is that we push up to win the ball high.”
After doubts started surfacing from outside Liverpool, Klopp is once again proving what an incredible manager he is again, this season.
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