Klopp on Brentford clash (Full Presser)
Klopp previews stuttering Liverpool's Premier League game v Brentford
Transcript
00:00 They've just employed three new content creators who I think are going to do InVisions every week.
00:06 Yeah, because it's weird, because in the VFL there's so many more games that are on live, but they're not on at the weekend.
00:15 Morning!
00:19 Boring! Really boring.
00:24 We were just talking about Mallorca. Where was your place again in Mallorca?
00:29 You have a place in Mallorca, right?
00:31 Yeah.
00:33 We were just chatting about it because you just couldn't come back from Mallorca.
00:36 Ah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Santa Ponta.
00:38 There you go.
00:41 All good?
00:43 Jürgen, firstly I wanted to touch on Lucho, obviously an emotional day for him on Sunday.
00:48 From your perspective as a manager, has it been quite a difficult scenario to work your way through,
00:55 or is it just a case of taking the human side and leaving it to him as to how he wants to be?
01:01 Yeah, I don't know how I wanted to describe it.
01:06 It's difficult in a different way, so it's not about...
01:13 I always know there are more important things than football, I never forget that,
01:16 it's just during the games, from time to time you really forget that,
01:21 and the priorities are always clear.
01:25 So, never had a situation like that, we have different situations in life,
01:30 and family members who get ill or stuff like this,
01:36 that's what you have over the years, of course, from time to time you don't want to have that,
01:40 but you have to deal with it, or even if grandparents or parents die you have that as well.
01:44 But that's a situation which ends in a specific moment,
01:50 and then we as human beings have to deal with it.
01:52 But this is so different because it's an ongoing thing,
01:55 you never know and you want to help and you can't help.
01:58 So that makes it really special, and you're always afraid for your dad in this case,
02:05 or for a dad of a friend of ours.
02:08 So that's the difference.
02:10 The only way I understand it is that Lucio has to make the decision,
02:16 Lucio has to say when he's ready, Lucio has to tell me, "I want to train, I will do that."
02:21 I don't think I ever did that before, for that long time at least,
02:25 but it's new, unfortunately, and that's why we dealt with it like we did.
02:32 Do you think his desire to play and be part of the team,
02:36 for whatever reason he wants it to be,
02:38 almost gets a few percent out of everyone around him?
02:42 I don't think about that. I understand we talk about it,
02:46 that's one thing we worry about, and the other thing is, "What else could it mean?"
02:51 It's not important, it's really not important.
02:54 This group was very together before that happened,
02:58 but in the moment it's just good that we are together, that everybody is really caring.
03:03 And Lucio knows that.
03:05 That's nothing else I want to take out of it,
03:08 I said in the first game, "Fight for him," but it was not that I wanted an extra fight,
03:13 I just needed to find a way to get focus on the next game,
03:18 because that was super difficult, the first game we played without him.
03:22 It didn't feel right that you play football at all in this moment,
03:27 but we had to do it, so we did it, and the boys found a way.
03:31 For footballers, for people in general, in sport or whatever,
03:34 the team you are in is the safe place, should be the safe place.
03:38 That's what Lucio, from a specific moment on, could use again.
03:43 We are here when he's here, we don't talk to him about it,
03:46 we are on the news, if there are news we get them, but we don't have to ask for it.
03:50 We know how he feels, so we don't have to ask for that,
03:53 when he's here it's normality.
03:55 You spoke after the Lucen game, it's always difficult with the draw,
03:59 whether you take it to the glass half-full or half-empty,
04:02 or a point gained or two dropped, but you said there was 0.0 counter-pressing
04:07 in that first half in particular, and you would try and work it out as to why.
04:11 Have you managed to work it out yet?
04:13 Yeah, because we were there but we were not there.
04:16 Counter-press is an impulse in the first moment,
04:19 and then the last step is the most important.
04:22 If you are there you have to block the ball,
04:24 we had situations where we were with three players against one,
04:28 but the one Luton player could get out.
04:30 The charts show that the last percent of conviction that night was not there.
04:35 The reason I don't know why it wasn't there, I can just say it wasn't there.
04:40 And we will change that, definitely.
04:43 That's very important for the way we want to play.
04:46 And besides that, I think when you look back,
04:50 there's one team who should have won the game, that's us.
04:53 We didn't use our chances, so then you cannot win a game.
04:56 When we concede a goal you have to score at least one to get a point,
04:59 and that's exactly what happened.
05:01 But there's no bigger story behind it, it's just a game.
05:05 We were not at our best, definitely not that night,
05:09 it was a different game to most others we played,
05:12 and now we have the chance to put it right again.
05:15 There were a few games sort of like that last season,
05:19 I think six of your away games against the bottom half you didn't score in.
05:23 So at least you can take a little bit of a positive that you found a way this time
05:27 to get a goal and get something out of the match.
05:30 In a world where everything gets analysed, I can imagine that is an interesting fact.
05:36 Let's take the Nottingham away game last year, which we lost 1-0.
05:43 In this game we had sitters from half a yard, from a yard.
05:49 Things happen sometimes in life and there's no explanation for it.
05:53 It's not that we are there and we don't create or don't have that.
05:56 In the moment when you create a lot but you don't finish it off,
05:59 there's nothing with attitude or whatever, it's just...
06:02 It happens, it's an inch on the foot or the head or whatever,
06:05 and that's it, that's all the difference between scoring and not scoring.
06:08 So if that's the case, if it was the first goal we scored against a newly promoted team,
06:14 then it's a start for whatever.
06:16 I don't know when we play the others, but we will play them obviously,
06:20 and we will try again.
06:22 First and foremost to play better, if we play better then it's a good chance we will score.
06:26 Guess one of the negatives from Sunday is that Alexis will miss the Brentford game.
06:31 A lot's obviously been made of him, a lot's been spoken about Dom,
06:35 two options you might have would obviously Ryan carries on,
06:38 and Wataru Endo, how has he adapted to what you're asking from him in the field so far?
06:42 Very, very good, and yes, of course Wataru was all the time very important for us.
06:47 That's, again, another part of football, you line up an 11,
06:50 you think they play well and the others don't do well, that's not true.
06:54 Thank God Wataru makes steps every day, and that's important.
06:59 We had stories like this in the past, this year it looked a little bit different,
07:03 that players maybe fit in a bit quicker, but we had stories.
07:06 I don't know, Andy Robertson didn't play for half a year,
07:09 nobody can remember it anymore, but it was like that,
07:12 other players as well had their struggles in the beginning,
07:15 but it didn't even struggle, we played pretty good and successfully.
07:21 He's super important for us, he played a lot of games,
07:24 and if he plays all the games, they say, "But he's not starting in the Premier League."
07:27 It has nothing to do with the Premier League, it's a little bit of rhythm,
07:30 but he will definitely start games in the Premier League, 100 per cent.
07:34 And now it's just important that we get through this period,
07:37 until the international break and then after,
07:40 that we get through with as little injuries as possible,
07:43 because the games are coming thick and fast, it's crazy how many we have to play,
07:47 and we need them all, and you will see them all.
07:51 We are together for a while, we are much better used to each other than we were,
07:58 things are going in the right direction, we are not there yet,
08:02 we are not as stable as I wish, but that's normal as well.
08:06 Other midfield options, we saw you bring on Trent in that midfield,
08:12 against Bournemouth in the Cup last week,
08:15 did he obviously try it in pre-season as well?
08:18 Yeah, possibility, depends on the situation, the opponent, on a lot of things,
08:23 but we know he can play there.
08:25 If we just put him there, then we lose one of the best right-backs in the world,
08:32 so we should not forget that completely, at least.
08:35 Of course he's an option for that position.
08:38 Brentford next, I don't think I've ever seen an easy game against Brentford,
08:43 they were promoted, I'll come on to the challenges they pose in a moment,
08:47 but particularly the away game you played against them last season,
08:51 was that one of the matches where you thought, "Something needs to change",
08:55 or "This is coming to the end of a great team"?
08:58 Thankfully, sometimes I remember bad things, in this specific case not really.
09:04 I'm pretty sure it was not good, did they score from a set-piece?
09:08 Pretty sure.
09:10 Yeah, super challenging to play, Thomas Frank and Brentford,
09:16 it's for different reasons, for sure they do really well,
09:19 I'm not sure they're 100 per cent happy with the season,
09:22 but losing Ivan Toni, if that player was for them, is brutal.
09:28 But they are stable in the table, that's probably what Brentford wants,
09:34 getting through his situation and when he's coming back, using him again or whatever.
09:40 Yeah, it's a specific side, well-organised, had a few problems in the season,
09:47 I would say, to get used to the game without Ivan,
09:50 but when you look at the table, they are in the middle with a tendency going up,
09:55 so that's how it is. But it's well-organised, sensational set-pieces,
10:00 and all these kind of things, that's it.
10:03 Really offensive players, really fast, counter-attacking really good,
10:07 they change styles from time to time,
10:09 especially if they consider you as a top-six team,
10:12 then it's a bit more defensive, if not then they have a bit more possession parts.
10:16 It's always interesting to play them, and difficult as well,
10:24 but it's Anfield and we should use that.
10:27 Do you see it as a particular help that you talked about the set-pieces at Brentford,
10:33 Luton pretty similar, that you've had a bit of a test against a very physical team
10:38 and you're going into another one in the next game?
10:41 Yeah, it only helps if you do the same things again, if you have the same focus again,
10:46 because that's super important.
10:48 In a game like this it was clear, we defended the set-piece of Luton exceptionally well,
10:52 I cannot remember a real chance from that, if I'm right,
10:55 so they block Ali and all these kind of things, so it's really tricky.
11:00 Brentford analysed didn't help me yet,
11:06 so give me a moment, I don't know exactly which kind of new ideas they have since last year,
11:13 but they always have ideas, so it's always different,
11:16 and it takes ages until they take the set-piece,
11:20 because so many things are different, whether they're the first post, far post,
11:24 first post, whatever, have a huddle, no huddle, pass the ball back, short set-piece,
11:29 whatever, but they will have ideas.
11:32 In a game you have to make sure that first and foremost the concentration level is there,
11:38 and everybody feels responsible in these moments,
11:40 because sometimes offensive players, for them it's kind of a break,
11:43 "It's not my first job, the ball is coming around,
11:46 "and you are not there for the ball to the edge," and stuff like this.
11:49 That was really good, and yes, it helps,
11:51 the more positive performances you have in that specific part of the game,
11:55 the better it is, and the more conviction you get from it, and that's what we should do.
12:00 Just a final one about the job that Thomas Frank has done,
12:04 do you ever see a little bit of yourself in certain other managers,
12:08 that probably when you started out with Mites you had to do things differently to get up,
12:12 and ultimately stay up, that clubs like Brentford deserve a lot of praise
12:17 and they don't have the ability to invest as heavily as other clubs?
12:22 It's a while ago that I see myself in this situation,
12:26 because it's too long ago that I was at Mainz,
12:28 but of course I know and understand it, like it was now with Robert at Luton,
12:32 that reminded me a lot.
12:34 Small stadium, nobody needs Luton in the Premier League,
12:38 nobody needed Mainz in the Premier League,
12:40 so that's how it was, but we were there and we enjoyed it,
12:43 it was great fun for all of us, each game was a massive challenge.
12:47 I'm not sure, Brentford are still in the bracket, to be honest,
12:50 they are too smart, they are doing too well, very smart transfer business,
12:54 and Thomas is adapting with style and stuff like this,
12:58 he plays against possession teams, plays against other teams,
13:02 all of a sudden they are a possession team themselves,
13:05 so it's really interesting, he's doing a brilliant job,
13:08 he seems to be very happy there.
13:11 A while ago we had a manager's meeting and he could get there by bike,
13:15 so obviously he likes life in the area as well.
13:19 He's a cool guy, I respect him a lot,
13:22 but I'm not sure I should compare these kind of things,
13:25 they are doing really well, really smart, and we want to win anyway.
13:30 - Thank you very much. - You're welcome.
13:33 - Thank you, Rob. - Thank you.
13:35 Thanks boss.
13:37 Welcome.