Jurgen Klopp feels Diogo Jota is on the verge of becoming a world-class striker after the Portugal international scored 20 goals for the first time in his career. Jota's first-half goal in the 2-0 win over Watford was his 14th in 27 Premier League appearances this season, and it gave the team their 10th consecutive top-flight victory after Fabinho added a late penalty. Since joining the club in September 2020, the 25-year-old has an overall strike rate of 33 in 70 appearances, demonstrating that he was a wise £43million addition to a forward line that already included Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, and Roberto Firmino. 'He's improved a lot since he came in, which has a lot to do with his age, but he's growing into the world class striker role step by step"- Klopp.
'He is delivering for Portugal on a continuous basis, which is a difficult task given their offensive talent, so he is exactly the player we expected him to be, if not a little bit better.'
Jota was regarded as a hardworking wide forward with some individual skill at Wolves before to his arrival at Anfield, but Liverpool's recruitment team saw beyond that to the player they could mold him into.
And it has been demonstrated this season, as he is only six goals behind Salah in the race for the Golden Boot, despite never scoring more than nine Premier League goals in a single season.'
Diogo has always been clear that he is not a genuine winger; he is a striker who can also play on the wing.
'He played all three forward positions for us and performed admirably every time.'
'We have a tendency to be excessively stagnant at times.' This (the first goal) was a really fluid circumstance in which Diogo was high up, he made a wonderful cross, and if no one was there, it was just a cross with no result.
'It was, however, a fantastic goal.' Absolutely. That's him. He had it in him at all times.
'I've said it a few times: he had a different job at Wolves, and he did it so well that we thought, 'We want him.'
Jota wants to score more goals, and he'll need them if Liverpool is to not only keep pace with Manchester City in the title race, but also stay on track for an unlikely, unprecedented quadruple.
'It's the first time I've reached 20 in my career, so just keep going because we still have a lot to play for,' the Portuguese told liverpoolfc.com.
While Liverpool's focus is on winning trophies, Watford's is solely on surviving, as they are still in the relegation zone after a 13th defeat in their last 15 league matches.
They have important games against Leeds, Brentford, and Burnley coming up before the end of the month, and manager Roy Hodgson was pleased with the performance at the weekend at Anfield.
'The performance against Liverpool gives me hope and the belief that we can ask these teams some questions,' he said.
'I believe it is critical for the players to remember that they are capable of achieving their goals.'
'They must also recognize that we will have to repeat the process.'
'After doing something well but not getting a result, you might desire the next game to be easier or not require as much effort.'
'We have to realize that what we accomplished and how we played (at Anfield) is our last hope of surviving.'
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