Klopp Defends Changes in Wake of FA Cup Exit
Liverpool manager, Jurgen Klopp, has defended his team selection after they lost 2-1 to Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday, 7 January, leading to their shocking exit from the FA Cup.
The German coach made nine changes to his starting line-up during the third-round tie. This included 16-year-old debutant, Ki-Jana Hoever, who was brought in to replace defender Dejan Lovren, who suffered a hamstring injury just six minutes into play.
However, without Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane – who all began on the bench – the Reds struggled to get any momentum going forward.
Although Divock Origi’s goal levelled the score, the Wolves’ sealed Liverpool’s fate with a stunning goal from midfielder Ruben Neves.
Speaking to reporters after the match, Klopp defended his changes, saying: “I changed a lot because I thought we had to not because I wanted to. The problem was that we played a similar line-up in three tough games, so it was clear we had to change.”
He added: “We tried everything and we wanted to give the boys confidence … we’ve played worse, we’ve played better.”
Image: Klopp’s Liverpool are four points clear of Manchester City at the top of the table. [online image] (2019) sourced on 8 January 2019 from: https://cdn-01.independent.ie/sport/soccer/article37683042.ece/a5753/AUTOCROP/w620/ipanews_1d7b3a5e-18fb-436b-9cc1-a9ae84d11282_embedded240445168
