Jurgen Klopp has a simple answer to why Mohamed Salah and Liverpool are ‘suffering’

Jurgen Klopp explains what he thinks about Liverpool’s struggles in front of goal this season

Jurgen Klopp believes Liverpool’s struggle in front of goal this season stems from their inability to gather their key players on the pitch long enough.

And the Reds boss admits it could be some time before anything from a new offensive department fires on all cylinders as injuries continue to sideline Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino.

Mohamed Salah tops the club’s scoring charts with 17, but Darwin Nunez is the only other striker to have recorded double figures in all competitions for the Uruguayan international (10) in his first season at Anfield.

Diaz and Jota have both been injured since October and the former is not expected to return until March after undergoing surgery last month following a setback in his recovery from a knee injury. Firmino is another influential figure who has been sidelined lately. He has missed the last eight games with a calf injury sustained in training in a 3-2 defeat by Manchester City in the Carabao Cup on 22 December. At least Jota’s calf problem is easing, with the Portuguese international expected to return in the coming weeks, but he has been goalless since April last year, while Cody Gakpo is yet to find the net after moving from PSV Eindhoven early . of the month.

Jota, Diaz and Firmino will all be absent from Sunday’s visit to Brighton in the FA Cup and Klopp admits the troubled nature of his front row was the reason for the lack of a real threat in the latter third round. Diaz, Nunez and Salah have worked together for just 343 minutes all season so far and the Liverpool manager admits the latter is struggling with pace.

“Yes, of course Mo suffers, but he was a well-trained machine that for three (of Salah, Firmino and Sadio Mane), everything was clear in what we were doing,” Klopp said. “So it’s Mo, Luis and Darwin who only played together for 343 minutes? And Diogo wasn’t in that combination or Bobby (Firmino), that doesn’t help. Not helpful. All have Jota, Diaz and Firmino all to be absent from Sunday’s visit to Brighton in the FA Cup and Klopp admits his troubled front-row nature was the reason for the lack of a real threat in the final third. Diaz, Nunez and Salah have worked together for just 343 minutes all season so far and the Liverpool manager admits the latter is struggling with pace.

“Yes, of course Mo suffers, but he was a well-trained machine that for three (of Salah, Firmino and Sadio Mane), everything was clear in what we were doing,” Klopp said. “So it’s Mo, Luis and Darwin who only played together for 343 minutes? And Diogo wasn’t in that combination or Bobby (Firmino), it’s not helpful. Not helpful. Everyone was affected by it, that’s for sure.

“The offensive game, despite all that quality, requires a lot of work. A lot of information is given. It’s how you work to move, you create an impression of a lot of these things, you know where your teammate is.

“It’s not cool but we can’t wait to give our best again and win 5-0 and go to the next game. We have to work hard, nobody wants to hear it but we have to do it. And then .” in two or three weeks we will have other options and we can mix them. “Now we have a really big advantage with Cody, a connector, he can play both wing and centre. Obviously when Darwin plays there he’s higher and goes full back, we have so all kinds of things to use It was always clear that we never played with a No9, even when Sadio (Mane) was around he slacked off at times but that’s not Darwin’s game and there’s really a handful there and it’s all good, if they were all in there and we could build something, but we haven’t done it yet.

“We are starting a new chapter and we are talking about Mo Salah and it could be the start of a discussion or the end of a discussion, I have no idea. But when you’re in his shoes and he’s scored hundreds of goals and you’re not scoring, the first thing to remember is that you’re not scoring in that moment. But that’s not the problem at the moment. If Mo scores in two games and we keep a clean sheet in both games, then we have more points.

“We started the season with Harvey (Elliott) in the middle position in midfield and with Hendo (Jordan Hernderson) it’s different but not too different and now it’s Naby (Keita) at the moment but normally you build a real base on on and that’s what we don’t really have. People ask, ‘Why is it now?’ and yes, it’s not that hard to explain. “Here in this building we are 100% ready to overcome this. Do I wish for everything to be easier and for us to qualify for the final at the end of the season? Yes, absolutely. But unfortunately, I’ve been through other things in my life and not all of them 100% super positive, but I just know that the better and more clearly you behave in your low moment, the better it will be in the high and higher moments.

“You have to be respectful, show the right things, you have to criticize but not go crazy. You have to get through it and there are finals and trophies at the end of the tunnel, they are all there but not now. And the only problem , what you have now is time because nobody wants to invest time but that’s how this situation is not perfect but the base of the last two games is something that I like and with which I can work.

New signing Gakpo could lead the line at the Amex on Sunday as Liverpool seek revenge for the 3-0 loss at the south coast two weeks ago. It’s been a quiet start to life at Anfield for the £37m Netherlands international. However, Klopp is confident Gakpo will be a long-term success at Liverpool, saying: “His defense is great, you can say we bought a striker and you talk about his defense but the defense in that position is great, that’s great. is what we need.

“Everyone is used to when the ball goes wide and inside on the six there’s someone around, suddenly there’s no one. Then Chelsea two sixes, that’s the decisive play in the team’s engine room. We just let them pass the ball and that’s not good.

“You can see from his finishing that he’s a sensational finisher, his long-range shooting is exceptional, but in games he was a bit rushed. He has a long-term contract here. I’m totally happy – people say he didn’t score, but the moment he joins our team as a striker, ‘congratulations!’, and then he’s judged for not scoring, he’s not very good looking

“Internally he’s fine and he’s fine. He’s a smart kid, he really wants to learn and he’s a good listener. He’s fine.”