Robbie Savage expressed concern about Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool team’s “body language and desire” and questioned whether the Reds “have worked”.
The Merseysiders have had a far from convincing start to the season and suffered an embarrassing 4-1 loss to Napoli in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Savage is now unsure if last season’s FA Cup and League Cup winners will finish in the top four this term.
“I said three weeks ago that Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool needed a rebuild, a reinvention. I got hammered for it, but it’s true. Perhaps Jurgen will read the column! Savage wrote in his column for the Mirror.
“I have seen their games and I see their midfield. I am a big fan of Jurgen Klopp, but every team has a cycle. I wonder about body language and desire.
“Klopp’s teams are supposed to play heavy metal football with back-to-front intensity and aggression. Against Napoli they were not good defensively. Even Virgil van Dijk. Positioning, body language. Recovery runs are lethargic.”
Virgil van Dijk should not be singled out for his dismal performance and Savage is right to express concern about the performance of many of Klopp’s team and our performance in Napoli was a real concern.
Many others just weren’t good enough in Italy and Napoli deserved to win.
READ MORE: Sam Allardyce reveals the one moment he ‘never got over’ when he faced ‘fantastic’ Jurgen Klopp
“I ask: has Liverpool worked? That performance at Napoli was the worst half of football with Klopp,” Savage added. “The standards they have set are there to be seen. This is what they have achieved. They are one of the best teams in the Premier League.
“Something has to be done quickly. Klopp is an incredible coach and I admire him enormously. But he now he needs to make use of all his managerial skills. It is a fascinating test. The title is gone in my opinion already. Will they win the Champions League? Magical Anfield can get them to the other side of the line, but it’s tough.
“They played every game they could last season, and now they look lethargic apart from 9-0 against Bournemouth. It is a concern. When I say concern, Liverpool’s concern is to stay in the top four. Man City will win it. Watch Arsenal, refreshing Chelsea, Spurs right in the mix, Man United winning their last four. So you see Liverpool.
“I had them down for second place in the league. Can we really contemplate them outside of the top four? It is not a fact. I hope they do because I love to see them in the Champions League, but it will be difficult.”
The only thing you normally expect from a Liverpool team is hard work and commitment, but that’s what most of our team lacked on Wednesday.
Except for Harvey Elliott, Luis Diaz and Thiago Alcantara when he entered the fray at the hour mark, the rest of the players should be ashamed of how they performed.
It was as if they were not interested in competing with the Serie A team, almost as if they were treating the match as a pre-season friendly.
It would have been interesting to see if Klopp got a reaction from his players against Wolves at Anfield tomorrow, but that game was of course postponed following The Queen’s passing on Thursday.
At the moment it’s hard to argue against Savage’s claim that the ‘title is gone’, but it’s only the early days of the season and we trust Klopp and company. can change things.
#Ep59 of The Empire of the Kop Podcast: Why is Liverpool so poor? Napoli’s nightmare… and more!
