Jurgen Klopp admits that Manchester City's tactics shocked Liverpool and explains the half-time team meeting
Manchester City and Liverpool FC played out an entertaining 2-2 draw, keeping the Premier League title in their own hands.
Jurgen Klopp admitted that Manchester City's tactics against his Liverpool team were somewhat surprising, and he used a video to motivate his players during their second-half comeback.
City got off to a better start than Liverpool, taking the lead through Kevin De Bruyne, but Diogo Jota equalized with Liverpool's first attack. Before halftime, Gabriel Jesus put City ahead again, but Sadio Mane equalized within a minute of the restart to earn a point for Klopp's men.
To motivate his players, Klopp revealed how City's unexpected approach inspired some half-time tweaks, including a focus on Jota's goal.
"I think we can describe it as a boxing match, both arms down for a second and you get a massive knock," he said, describing how some aspects of City's play surprised him.
"A lot of things appealed to me. I thought we were closer than we'd ever been. Controlled the game at all times, making simple passes and letting them run. That's how we got our goal. The start to the second half was much better. City obviously tried to use things like balls in behind - I don't recall them playing so many balls in behind, but they did."
"When you have these smart runs, it makes sense." Another one appears just as we try to catch our breath. The offside goal was a stroke of luck for us. It was a fantastic game, and the outcome is something we must and can live with. We could have done better, but we did a lot of things really well. The game's intensity is insane. It was entertaining, and I enjoyed it."
With Liverpool starting the second half so well, Klopp explained that it was a case of showing rather than telling his players how to improve.
"We showed [our] goal because it was a really good football situation, and if we did more, we would have chances," he explained.
I was confident that we could win this game. They were far more direct than we are today. They had a more direct idea than we did, and we wanted to let them run when they were in our possession." We were sometimes rushed defensively, putting us under pressure, and we can defend these situations better now. The second half was extremely intense; they required breaks as well, but their counter-attacks were effective. Their decision-making is excellent, and they always select the best player "I think it's a perfectly fine and well-deserved draw. We wanted to show them that my boys are exceptional as well."
Klopp expanded on the unexpected nature of City's approach in Match of the Day: "We'll play the game.
I'm already in the Benfica game, but we'll try to understand the key moments. The city was more direct than usual, while we were less so. We'll see what they do next time, as well as what we do. It's perfectly adequate for today."
Goalkeeper Jota also provided insight into Liverpool's tactical approach, telling the BBC: "We tried to condition their game the way they wanted, but they are obviously very good at what they do, so it's not easy." You know you're going to steal one or two balls sooner or later, and it's a football game, so you have to take advantage of your opportunities." We were losing, so we needed to change things up a little, and it's nice to have a break before we go again. [at half-time]. We had a very good beginning. It's a draw in the end and now we need to believe from here until the end."
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