Liverpool obeyed the pragmatic instructions of manager Juergen Klopp in a 1-0 win against Sunderland, where quality soccer was at a premium and there was an element of good fortune in a decisive goal scored by Christian Benteke.
As Liverpool ended the first half of the Premier League season, the result was all that mattered to Klopp, who ordered his team to go toe-to-toe with a Sunderland team fighting to avoid relegation.
“The manager has tried to drum into us that sometimes we’ve got to be dirtier, fight a bit more and play teams at their own game,” said Liverpool midfielder Adam Lallana, who admitted there was luck involved in the goal.
Photo: Reuters
Against a defensive Sunderland, Liverpool looked for the early goal but found it heavy going.
“We had our situations against a very good defending team, nearly only defending so that makes it harder for us,” said Klopp, who spoke to the players at halftime about the need to press more.
Lallana diverted Nathaniel Clyne’s pass toward Benteke after only 22 seconds of the second-half and the Belgian striker scored for the second successive match.
Photo: Reuters
“I don’t think I meant the flick to go directly into Christian’s path, but sometimes you need the rub of the green, especially at tough places like this,” Lallana said.
Benteke, who scored the winner against Leicester on Boxing Day, has made a timely return to form and Klopp insists there is more to come.
“I’m sure that he can play better, but at this moment, he needs goals more than anything else,” the Liverpool manager said.
Sunderland, who are poised to sign Lorient defender Lamine Kone, need goals from absolutely any source after a fifth straight defeat that left them seven points from safety ahead of tomorrow’s crucial game against the only team below them, Aston Villa.
“It was some encouragement to see the lads battling and fighting for themselves and trying to get a win or at least a point, but a bit of misfortune just after halftime took it away from us,” Sunderland manager Sam Allardyce said. “We need to try and strengthen the squad. That work has already started, but it is very, very difficult. Hopefully we will be successful sooner rather than later in January.”
Klopp was angry that Sunderland’s Jeremain Lens did not receive a red card for a foul on Mamadou Sakho and became involved in an argument with Allardyce and his staff on the touchline.
“He’s a soft German if that’s a red card,” Allardyce said. “There was some foul and abusive language towards my staff, which I didn’t like, but at the end we all shook hands and that’s how it should be.”
Klopp refused to rule out Liverpool as Premier League title contenders after ending the year level on points with Manchester United and nine behind leaders Arsenal.
“I don’t know,” the manager told Sky Sports television after Liverpool, who last won a top-flight title in 1990, won against Sunderland.
Liverpool should have scored more in a game in which Sunderland lacked an attacking edge, yet Klopp was still satisfied with a victory that lifted them into seventh place in the Premier League, five points from a Champions League place.
He has seen his side draw level with Manchester United, but said Liverpool still have a crucial psychological advantage.
“Both of us are on 30 points and at this moment Liverpool don’t feel too bad, but at Manchester United the atmosphere is not the best,” he said. “You can see how football is sometimes. We wanted 30 points and we got them — perfect. This is not the best we can do, we know this, but we had to fight. We knew about Sunderland’s situation.”
United have been seen as contenders for much of the season despite lackluster performances, but the heat is on manager Louis van Gaal, whose side have gone eight games without a win.
Klopp, now with 11 league matches under his belt since arriving at Liverpool to replace the sacked Brendan Rodgers, said things were going in the right direction.
“I can do better, but of course I did sometimes worse in my life so everything’s OK,” the German said.
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