It’s fair to say Liverpool haven’t had the start to 2017 they would have wanted. No Premier League wins, a semi-final-cup exit against Southampton, and a title challenge turning into a battle to stay in the top four.
But is it also fair to say the recent run has shown that Jurgen Klopp isn’t all he’s cracked up to be?
All over Europe this week there have been articles pondering what’s eating Liverpool up at the moment, and some have even questioned Klopp.
The charismatic manager has largely escaped the scrutiny dished out to Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola, and Liverpool doing better than both made that fair. The much higher budgets of the Manchester clubs is another allowance for Klopp, but there’s no escaping Liverpool’s shine has dimmed recently.
Jack Green has argued the case against Klopp and ponders that the manager hasn’t really achieved much since taking over at Liverpool. They finished 8th last season and are stuttering now, with Jack believing it’s the team’s defensive frailties and over reliance on Sadio Mane which has cost them.
Klopp’s record of losing finals was also brought up: “He can’t get his teams over the line, this was the chance to change that… and he blew it.”
A fair number of Liverpool fans may well be incensed with such a suggestion, and Tom Clee would be on their side. He argues that Klopp has already reached two major finals since being with Liverpool, and that the current criticism is due to the early success of the season.
Top four would have been considered a good aim for Liverpool at the start of the season, and now if the club finished fourth some would class it as failure. Tom reckons Klopp has largely been shopping in ‘the bargain basement’ because he has a long term plan, and now isn’t the time to judge harshly.
There’s arguments on both sides, and with just a few days left of the transfer window, it probably should be suggested that Liverpool could have recruited to bolster a squad which is lacking in certain areas.
Have your say in the YouTube comments section, decide which argument is best, and Betway have a whole raft of £10 bets to give away to people commenting.
