Liverpool information: Jurgen Klopp is proved proper as Arne Slot defends ‘season altering’ determination
Liverpool are back in Premier League action on Sunday when they travel to face Nottingham Forest, with the Reds looking to make it three wins on the spin
Liverpool have had somewhat of an upturn
Liverpool will aim to secure a hat-trick of victories when they face Nottingham Forest on Sunday. The Reds have been plagued by inconsistency this campaign and Arne Slot recognises they can’t afford to surrender more points in the Champions League battle.
The club’s improved fortunes can perhaps be attributed to the exit of set-piece coach Aaron Briggs, with the Reds appearing more solid from dead-ball situations since his departure. Nevertheless, Slot has hit back at any criticism directed towards his former colleague.
Meanwhile, former Reds manager Jurgen Klopp appears to have been vindicated after an ex-Liverpool player engineered an early departure from his boyhood club. And Daily Star Sport has rounded up all the latest news.
Arne Slot defends coach
Slot has backed former Liverpool set-piece specialist Briggs. Liverpool severed ties with Briggs on December 30 following the club’s concession of 13 goals from set-pieces across 26 matches.
Slot was questioned on Thursday about the team’s set-piece strategy but insisted it would be unfair to lay the blame solely at Briggs’ door. “I’m delighted that you asked that question because it would be very unfair to Aaron, who was only partly responsible for that, because in the end I’m responsible for everything.
“In the end it’s always my responsibility. But we were, in that period of time, so, so, so unlucky. We all knew that it couldn’t go on like that, because we hardly gave away a chance in set-pieces but every goal went in, and we created multiple opportunities to score and the ball didn’t go in.
“So that things go back to normal now is something which we expected. Aaron had an analyst and the two of them were mainly responsible for it – in the end I’m responsible, but they did the work. That hasn’t changed.
“So Lewis [Mahoney, first-team set-piece analyst] does the main work and then we have a meeting together and we look at the last details. But in general we didn’t change that much, we maybe made one or two slight changes but we didn’t change much.
“What changed is things went back to normal, because in the Champions League, when Aaron was with us, we were already very good – I think we were No. 1 in set-pieces. I would mainly say things went back to normal and we’ve adjusted one or two small things.”
Jurgen Klopp proven right
Ex-Liverpool midfielder Philippe Coutinho has secured another departure from yet another side. The Brazilian was notably cautioned he would rue leaving Liverpool as he battled to secure a switch to Barcelona during the 2017/18 campaign.
Coutinho has now informed Vasco da Gama, the outfit where he featured as a youth player, that he wants to cancel his contract. Reports from Brazil have indicated that the news shocked Vasco, with the side even beginning talks with the 33 year old regarding a fresh deal.
Coutinho’s current agreement was due to expire in June. His choice appears to have originated from backlash he has encountered from supporters after being jeered during a recent home fixture.
This represents another disappointing chapter in a career that has fallen short since Klopp cautioned him just prior to his Barcelona departure in early 2018. The German had declared: “Stay here [Liverpool] and they will end up building a statue in your honour. Go somewhere else, to Barcelona, to Bayern Munich, to Real Madrid, and you will be just another player. Here you can be something more.”
The playmaker’s stint at the Camp Nou included a loan period at Bayern Munich and concluded in 2022. An attempt to resurrect his career at Aston Villa under Steven Gerrard started encouragingly but eventually faltered.
There were also periods at Al-Duhail in Qatar and Vasco before he finalised a permanent transfer from Villa to the latter last year.
