LONDON: Jurgen Klopp has backed Liverpool’s “bad losers” to deliver a strong response when they face Brighton on Saturday stung by only their third defeat this season.
Klopp’s side were beaten 1-0 by Inter Milan in the Champions League last 16 second leg on Tuesday.
Although Liverpool advanced to the quarter-finals 2-1 on aggregate, having won the first leg in Italy 2-0, Klopp is well aware of the impact of a rare loss on his ferociously competitive players.
It was Liverpool’s first defeat at Anfield in a year and Klopp is expecting them to erase that sluggish display with a victory at Brighton as they chase Premier League leaders Manchester City.
“We are not good losers. I have usually after a game a little speech in the dressing room, most of the time it is quite nice to tell the boys how good they were, but in this game it was slightly different,” Klopp told reporters on Friday.
“I realized when I looked in their eyes I am in a better mood than the players when I came in and I lost as well.
“My first thought was ‘We are through against tough opponents’ and their first thought was ‘We lost’. Both is fine somehow.”
Klopp is confident the rare feeling of losing will give his players a wake-up call heading into the business end of the season.
“I didn’t like part of the performance, especially defensively, and that’s a good point to make as if we don’t defend well against Brighton we have a problem,” he said.
“Our counter-press was not even close to what I would have expected and we got punished for it.
“Do I like the fact that if you don’t do what the plan was then you get a knock for it then yes.
“I believe in humans and I really believe that everybody has a specific amount of self-motivation.
“If you see other guys around you who have something similar or bigger, higher level of motivation you realize there is possibly some room for improvement.”
Klopp has also told Mohamed Salah that the decision over signing a contract extension is in the Egypt forward’s hands.
Salah’s current deal expires at the end of next season and there is an impasse on negotiations over a new deal at present.
“I think Mo definitely expects this club to be ambitious and we are. It’s Mo’s decision. The club did what it can do. It is all fine. All fine from my point of view,” Klopp said.
“Nothing has happened further, no signing, no rejection, we just have to wait.”
Liverpool boss Klopp expects strong response from his ‘bad losers’
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Liverpool boss Klopp expects strong response from his ‘bad losers’
- It was Liverpool's first defeat at Anfield in a year and Klopp is expecting them to erase that sluggish display with a victory at Brighton
- Klopp is confident the rare feeling of losing will give his players a wake-up call heading into the business end of the season
Misfiring Japan overcome Taiwan in Women’s Asian Cup
- In the later Group C match, Vietnam edged India 2-1 after forward Ngan Thi Van Su bagged a brace
- Japan are the highest-ranked team in the competition and are desperate for a third title
PERTH: Bayern Munich midfielder Momoko Tanikawa finally cracked a dogged Taiwan on Wednesday as powerhouse Japan kicked off their Women’s Asian Cup with a 2-0 victory in Perth.
Brimming with a talented squad featuring 16 England-based players, Japan dominated a one-sided match played in fierce heat.
But they were left frustrated by an inability to hit the target other than Tanikawa’s strike in the 61st minute and a header from substitute Kiko Seike in the 92nd minute.
In the later Group C match, Vietnam edged India 2-1 after forward Ngan Thi Van Su bagged a brace, including the winner in the 94th minute.
Japan are the highest-ranked team in the competition and are desperate for a third title to add to their back-to-back triumphs in 2014 and 2018.
But they will need to clean up their finishing after attempting 30 shots and enjoying almost 90 percent of possession.
“We need to be a little more sharp but this was the first game and we open with three points, so you cannot be unhappy with that,” Japan coach Nils Nielsen said.
Taiwan, who reached the final eight in the last tournament in 2022, did not have a shot on goal but fought gamely with goalkeeper Wang Yu-ting producing a superb performance.
Under Nielsen, a Greenlander and Japan’s first foreign-born women’s coach, the team have vowed to play in a fast and brash manner.
Heeding Nielsen’s words, Japan were aggressive from the outset and peppered the goal but without success.
Taiwan were clinging on against the odds with Wang pulling off a spectacular save to deny a bullet from Mina Tanaka.
Tanikawa then hit the post as Japan racked up an astonishing 13 shots within the opening 15 minutes.
Taiwan’s woes deepened when forward Pu Hsin-hui limped off the field with an apparent knee injury.
They continued to bravely defend, leaving Japan flustered as the teams took a drinks break in the 32nd minute with the temperature hitting 36C.
Japan came perilously close to breaking the deadlock just before half-time only for Wang to prove a thorn.
Taiwan’s embattled defense had 35 clearances in the first half, with each one cheered enthusiastically by their vocal supporters, who livened up the sparse terraces.
Wang was again put to work after the interval as she smothered Tanaka’s attempt from short range.
But Wang was helpless when Tanikawa finally slotted home after getting on the receiving end of a superb pass from Hana Takahashi.
Japan’s celebrations were put on ice until VAR determined the ball had not deflected off Tanikawa’s hand on the way down.
It looked like it would be Japan’s only goal until Seike stepped up late to put the match beyond doubt.
