Judge Klopp was happy with his team’s mentality in trying circumstances following their League Cup victory over Bournemouth.
These are the manager’s four main takeaways from the news conference following the game.
Attitude is crucial
It was not the kind of night for “tiki-taka” football on Wednesday. The Reds’ mentality was largely responsible for their victory, despite Liverpool’s foolish attempts to do so at times.
“It’s all about attitude in these moments, both teams obviously wanted, and I’m really happy about that,” added Klopp. “Everyone can expect it from the home team, but I saw it from my team as well: how hard we really wanted.”
It was just one more indication that this Liverpool team is prepared to fight, whether it be against inclement weather or the opponent.
Quansah was “really good”
Jarell Quansah appears to be firmly entrenched in Klopp’s future plans with each outing.
His League Cup performance was praised by the manager as “really good in these circumstances, wow,” adding that there were “so many difficult balls to judge coming down.”
He “did really well on the ball,” according to Klopp, with Caoimhin Kelleher frequently passing to him. The center-half frequently provided defensive support for Joel Matip to help save Liverpool.
“Luck is necessary”
Although Bournemouth had their opportunities and could have won if they had been more clinical, Liverpool will feel that they deserved to match.
Although playing into the wind looked to help them, Klopp wasn’t overly concerned. “In life, and in football occasionally, you need luck,” he remarked.
“Bournemouth could have finished situations a little bit better off tonight—it’s an inch on the foot, not more—in one or two moments.”
At the end of the game, the Reds had seven shots on goal compared to Bournemouth’s six.
“It’s all about winning,” with thanks to Nunez
The game was “all about winning” and “all about getting through,” as Klopp freely acknowledged.
Klopp was pleased to emerge victorious from a “top cup game in strange, strange circumstances” despite the sideways wind.
“It was obvious that there would be a lot of wind, but playing football in that kind of weather is really different,” he continued. We have a long drive home now, but it feels lot better to move on to the next round.
The “long trip” home was necessary because Liverpool’s flight home was cancelled.
After Bournemouth’s goal, the game appeared to be in the balance, but Nunez scored for the third straight game to win it; Klopp called his curler “unbelievable.”
