Jürgen Klopp Speaks On Liverpool’s 2-1 Win Over Brighton As Reds Return To Top Of The Table

Jürgen Klopp described Liverpool’s 2-1 comeback win over Brighton & Hove Albion at Anfield as a “difficult game, good performance, fantastic result.”

Mohamed Salah scored decisively midway through the second half to secure all three points for Liverpool, after Luis Diaz’s volley cancelled out Danny Welbeck’s second-minute strike.

Klopp’s team thus kept their Premier League title bid on track on a day when the other two main contenders, Manchester City and Arsenal, met at Etihad Stadium.

Read the manager’s post-match press conference in its entirety below.

Liverpool’s response after conceding the early goal…

From my perspective, it was our best performance against Roberto [De Zerbi’s Brighton]. More possession is preferable to less. A really good game rhythm – aside from the goal, we lose possession of the ball. We can lose the ball high up the pitch, but that does not mean we have to concede; that was excellent work. As far as I could tell, it was also an excellent finish. I really liked the reaction, but I could tell we were rushing to finish. That was not at the same level as the others.

You can not create all the time like we did and then expect one or two of them to be good chances; we did not have enough shots on goal in the first half, and the ones we did have were rollers. We could have done better, but we still managed to score an equaliser off a set piece, which is always a good and very useful asset. We showed the boys a couple of situations at halftime and told them what we should keep doing, where we needed to calm down, and how we could improve our defence. We tried it again and controlled large portions of the game, as much as we could against them. It is not always possible because denial is extremely intense. It is extremely hard work.

The front line had to work hard and be patient at the appropriate times. Wataru [Endo] and Macca [Alexis Mac Allister] were in the right places, and Dom [Szoboszlai] was the surprise act, the chaser and chaos creator, which I thought worked really well. They had possession, but it was not what they wanted, which helps. We scored a fantastic second goal and a fantastic third goal, which was slightly offside but still a good goal. Then you have to get it over the queue. To be completely honest, we have not been in that situation with this team for ten years, so I expected us to be a little more nervous, but I thought the boys were very calm, which I really liked. Yes, they had moments; that is how it goes, and you can not deny them entirely. We won the game, and I think we all agreed we deserved to win, so it was a great afternoon.

Regarding Alexis MacAllister’s performance…

I saw a lot of special performances today. Yes, Macca was incredible, but when you have that kind of talent and character, you should show it. It is Macca; he can do it, so do it. Conor Bradley, Jarell Quansah, Wataru, and Dom are all exceptional performers. That is Joe Gomez. The boys are good, so show it. Yes, I am a huge fan of these boys, but I am no longer surprised if they perform at the highest level because that is exactly what I expect them to do, and when they do, it is fine. If they are unable to do so, I consider why and how we can assist; however, when they do, I am not as surprised as others; I am simply pleased that they can do so more frequently. Great game, so many moments, and then Caoimh [Kelleher] hits the ball out of the corner. I saw that pretty clearly, and I did not expect the hand to come. It was really cool to see him there. As previously stated, the game was difficult, but the performance was excellent, and the outcome was fantastic.

The team’s previous title-race experience is crucial for overcoming adversity during games.

I enjoyed the atmosphere today. When I speak of being nervous as a group, we were more nervous years ago. So, when we were 1-0 up, nobody in the stands could calm down until we scored the second or third goal. That was a long time ago, but it was something we had to work on together, and I loved the crowd’s reaction today – they were really into the game, which I really like.

So, as a unit, we have to get through this [and] decide whether or not we enjoy it. It will be difficult, nerve-racking at times, and your heart rate will be 180, 200, or whatever if you watch it or participate in it. But if we all enjoy it, we have a chance. If we don’t, we still have a chance; it is just much more difficult, which is why we try to remain optimistic in all of these situations. It is a fantastic situation; the boys brought us in, and we are there. I am not even sure how many points I have, but I got three more today. So we are there with two other teams competing for the biggest prize in English football, and we will see how it turns out. But I have decided to make an extra effort to enjoy it.

Will any of Liverpool’s injured players return for Thursday’s game against Sheffield United?

Curtis Jones is fully trained. So he trained with us yesterday but then had an extra shift because the [matchday] minus one session did not provide Curtis with the intensity he required, so he was with us and then had another shift. He will be undergoing full training. What exactly does this mean for the game? Let me look into that. Nobody else will return. The others are slowly but steadily recovering, but not yet.

Is Salah back to his sharpness after his injury?

In terms of playing, absolutely. Imagine if Mo had finished off all of the situations in his career; those would have been insane numbers, so it is perfectly fine. Mo, like others, was rushing through the finishing situations in the first half, and the finishes were not as good as they could have been. But then being that calm in the crucial moment when you have to finish the best football situation we played, that makes a real goalscorer, so I am completely satisfied with everything. He could play 90 or so minutes, and now we just have to keep going.

We need every boy. Darwin [Nunez] created so many opportunities for us, and Lucho [Diaz] was fantastic, so they were all very good today. As I previously stated, the two center-halves were outstanding. It was a fantastic football game against a team you know will put in the most effort. Defending them required probably the highest level of intensity in English football, but we performed admirably. I do not think they play many games like that anymore, where someone pressed in the way we did, and I am very pleased with that.