Jurgen Klopp’s first home game in the Premier League as the manager of Liverpool FC ended in a 1-1 draw courtesy of a late Sadio Mane equalizer.
Christian Benteke had given Liverpool the lead in the 77th minute with a thumping header into the top corner after a great cross from the right by James Milner. But Liverpool’s lead barely lasted four minutes as Sadio Mane bundled home the equalizer to deny Klopp his first win as the Liverpool manager.
The stalemate against Southampton means that Liverpool have drawn 8 out of their last 9 matches in all competitions. They currently lie in 9th place in the league with 14 points from 10 matches played.
Southampton draw “not the end of the world”: Klopp
Speaking to the media after the match, manager Jurgen Klopp urged Liverpool fans to remain patient and give him more time to work with the current squad.
“We had our moments, our situations, everything you need to win a close game,” said Klopp (via @LFC).
.
“We didn’t believe. I don’t understand this pressure but the guys feel it. We conceded one goal and it felt like the end of the world but it’s not the end of the world.
“I see development but the problem is the other teams don’t wait for us – they want to win, they want to beat us. I saw development, I saw the next step, but at the end we are disappointed because of the result.
“I hope I’m not the only person in the stadium who thought ‘this is not the end of the world’. We can work on this.”
Klopp needs more time to fix Liverpool
Jurgen Klopp has started off his Liverpool managerial career with 3 consecutive draws. Liverpool drew 0-0 with Spurs last weekend and 1-1 with Russian club Rubin Kazan in the Europa League on Thursday.
After losing Daniel Sturridge and Danny Ings to injury in the last 10 days, Klopp was left with no option but to start Divock Origi as the lone striker in his first 3 matches as the manager of Liverpool FC. Origi has lacked sharpness in front of goal and has failed to impress for Liverpool in the three matches hes played in so far.
But he is not the only one. The current crop of Liverpool players will take time to get used to Klopp’s philosophy of gegenpressing. Klopp will be looking to add to the current squad of players in the winter transfer window. As Klopp insisted, Liverpool fans need to be patient and give him sufficient time to cure the malaise that currently plagues the club.
Read the manager’s verdict on #LFC‘s 1-1 draw with @SouthamptonFC: https://t.co/dVfMoQ0ymR pic.twitter.com/XXS0mhijjC
a Liverpool FC (@LFC) October 25, 2015
