{"id":2239,"date":"2016-11-24T14:48:26","date_gmt":"2016-11-24T19:48:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonfootball.com\/?p=2239"},"modified":"2022-01-01T10:40:33","modified_gmt":"2022-01-01T15:40:33","slug":"jurgen-klopp-listen-warning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/2016\/11\/24\/jurgen-klopp-listen-warning\/","title":{"rendered":"J\u00fcrgen Klopp Should Listen To His Own Warning"},"content":{"rendered":"

J\u00fcrgen Klopp<\/strong>\u00a0should heed his own warning in regards to complacency. The enigmatic Liverpool<\/strong> manager recently went on record to\u00a0warn his players about complacency<\/a>\u00a0. Press statements attributed to him, point to worries that the Anfield<\/strong> players have rested on their laurels lately. Familiar issues upon returning from international breaks were in evidence in the last match against\u00a0Southampton<\/strong>. Fatigue for star players like\u00a0Philippe Coutinho<\/strong>, and key injuries namely to the mercurial\u00a0Adam Lallana<\/strong>. Performance wise Liverpool looked solid if not spectacular against the\u00a0Saints<\/strong>, while worryingly missing easy chances. On the face of it a point away at\u00a0St Mary\u2019s<\/strong>\u00a0is a decent result. However, complacency markedly came from the Liverpool manager particularly in the second half.<\/p>\n

Complacency.<\/p>\n

With the three points firmly there for the taking, Klopp doggedly refused to introduce a goal poacher until very late in the game. With the natural goal scoring talents of\u00a0Daniel Sturridge<\/strong>, and the power and pace of\u00a0Divock Origi\u00a0<\/strong>at his disposal, Klopp, complacently relied on his starting eleven. Southampton were defending almost exclusively, and the trio of\u00a0Sadio\u00a0Man\u00e9<\/strong>,\u00a0Coutinho<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Roberto Firmino<\/strong>\u00a0were becoming less likely to break the deadlock.\u00a0Klopp is undoubtedly a top class manager, he does possess however a stubborn streak in regards to possibly effective substitutions.<\/p>\n

Habitual.<\/strong><\/p>\n

According to Liverpool stats guru\u00a0Andrew Beasley<\/strong>,\u00a0Klopp hasn\u2019t favored game changing substitutions\u00a0at\u00a0Borussia Dortmund<\/strong>\u00a0or at Liverpool. In essence this has meant historically, Klopp\u2019s teams average a lower amount of late game winning goals. The Premier League<\/strong> title race is very tight so far in the top four positions. Late game winning or equalizing goals could prove to be crucial in Liverpool\u2019s challenge. The\u00a0Reds<\/strong>\u00a0have the talent in the squad to change games in their favor, with the right player changes at key times in games. Klopp needs to avoid complacency in his substitution policy when games are in the balance.<\/p>\n

Main Photo:<\/p>\n

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Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n