Drastic times call for drastic measures.
It hasn’t been a good 2017 so far for Liverpool.
Jurgen Klopp’s side have now gone three Premier League games without a victory and their worrying run of form has seen them fall down to fourth in the table as Arsenal and Tottenham occupy second and third.
Their latest defeat was a shock 3-2 loss to Swansea City at Anfield and it highlighted their defensive woes which has long been a problem for them this season.
Reds fans won't want to hear this https://t.co/Vj7MtGhR7B
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) January 22, 2017
The Merseyside club have only won one of their last six fixtures in all competitions and this came in a league cup replay against Plymouth Argyle.
Liverpool’s title challenge is in danger of being over before we reach February and as a result, Klopp has decided that a sit-down meeting with his players is the best course of action in an attempt to halt their worrying slide.
According to reports in The Guardian, Klopp held a “long” meeting with his players as he admits he has not been happy with the performances they have been producing lately. He even suggested that the players are not enjoying themselves at the moment:
“We are Liverpool, a really good football-playing side, and we don’t enjoy the job we have to do. It is not as though we are a team at the bottom of the league that has to defend 80% or 90% of the time. In most of our games we are dominant, so we have to enjoy this, even when we don’t come through after five minutes.”
Klopp thought his side had turned a corner in the build up to the Swansea game but mentioned that he is trying to make the players realize that they should enjoy what they do.
Their defensive record also got a mention and Klopp admits that his side keep conceding the same type of goals.
“…but I felt the defending could be improved. I also think the goals we have conceded in 2017 have been a little bit of the same story. The influence of throw-ins is a bit too big, for instance, so we spoke about that.”
It remains to be seen whether these ‘talks’ with his squad will improve their fortunes on the pitch. It may be the case that reinforcements, especially in defence, will need to be brought in to stem their slide down the Premier League table.
