The Hard Tackle brings you all the happenings in and around Anfield today.
It was a disappointing night for Liverpool at St. Mary’s as they lost the first leg of their League Cup semi-final against Southampton. Winger Nathan Redmond’s first-half strike proved to be the difference as the Saints pulled off an upset and drew first blood in a crunch encounter.
Speaking to the press after the game, Reds manager Jurgen Klopp admitted that his side were not up to the mark, but vowed that the players will fight back and make things right in the second-leg at Anfield.
“The start was good – the start was really good. If we played like this for 90 minutes, then it would have been very difficult for Southampton to cope with it,” said the German after the game.
“Even if I would try to explain it it’s not easy because I’m not actually used to a reaction like this from my boys. But we have to accept it, tonight it was not good. We will strike back, we will be a different team, a different side, everything will be different at Anfield,” added Klopp.
Coming to transfer stories, attacking midfielder Adam Lallana has emerged as a shock Barcelona and Juventus target. The 28-year-old appears to have turned a new leaf under Klopp and has become the German’s utility man at Anfield.
Lallana struggled to adapt to life in Merseyside during his first season, but the arrival of Klopp at the helm has undoubtedly helped revolutionise the player into one of the side’s main men. He has been used as a right wing forward as well as in a slightly deeper position this season and has performed exceptionally well in both the roles.
The England international has scored seven goals and provided as many assists in 18 Premier League appearances this season. Liverpool have been fantastic in offence and Lallana has been one of their main goal-scoring threats.
With Klopp set to be at Anfield for the long haul, he is unlikely to let go of one of his key components. The German will be eyeing a first-ever Premier League title win for Liverpool and he will struggle to achieve his goals if he looks to sell his first-team stalwarts.
Defender Mamadou Sakho is clearly an unwanted figure at the club and Klopp is expected to get rid of the Frenchman in January. Recent reports stated that Liverpool will be holding out for £20 million with La Liga side Sevilla are looking to snap him up in this window.
When asked about the possibility of signing another defender, Jorge Sampaoli said it was complicated, but that the club are unlikely to make meteoric changes in January. Goal quoted him as saying, “I don’t know if we will modify our squad again. Now, I think that we won’t reinforce more positions.
“We thought about signing another centre-back because [Daniel] Carrico had surgery, but it will be complicated.”
Build-up to Sunday
The Reds take on Premier League rivals Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday, and it will be the first instance in the league that a match will feature a spider-cam. Sky Sports reported that the camera will be tracking each player’s movement for the first time in English football history.
It will move at a speed of 20 miles per her hour and will be suspended on cables hanging above the pitch. The camera will provide a bird’s eye view angle of the players coming out of the tunnel and could capture a fast-paced counter-attack the moment it begins. It will also give the football pundits a lot more substance to base their post-game analysis on.
Meanwhile, Kop legend Graeme Souness has played up his former side’s chances against Manchester United and believes they can prove their title credentials with a win over their North-Western rivals. He said, “I would say that United are slight favourites with the home advantage and the momentum they’ve got right now, and the hiccups Liverpool have shown in the last few games.
“I think United did a number on Liverpool in October, turned up and nullified the threat. Now it’s Liverpool’s turn to go into the lion’s den and show they are real title contenders. If they can go and win, I think that would change my opinion on them.”
Liverpool have received a tremendous injury boost for this match. Brazilian attacker Philippe Coutinho returned to first-team football in the EFL Cup tie and made a cameo appearance. The 24-year-old may not be completely match fit, but he is expected to start on Sunday against United.
James Pearce of the Liverpool Echo has stated that club captain Jordan Henderson and defender Joel Matip will return to the matchday squad, while the former is expected to be named in the starting eleven. Deputy left-back James Milner is all but set to miss the crunch encounter.
