Jurgen Klopp unveils John Henry speeches as he explained the presence of Liverpool’s West Ham owner

Jurgen Klopp confirmed he spoke to Liverpool owner John Henry after Reds owner spotted at London Stadium

Klopp celebrates victory over West Ham. (Photo by Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images)

Jurgen Klopp has revealed he has already held talks with John Henry after the Liverpool owner attended his first Reds match in nearly 12 months.
Henry sat next to Liverpool chief executive Billy Hogan in the Premier League’s 2-1 win at West Ham United on Wednesday night.

The boss of Fenway Sports Group hadn’t seen Klopp’s side in action since their Premier League clash with Bournemouth in August.

Liverpool’s owners are under pressure from fans to back Klopp in the transfer market this summer with an extensive midfield rebuild expected, scrutiny of which has intensified after it emerged the Reds had ended their long search for the international English from Borussia Dortmund.

Jude Bellingham. And of Henry’s presence in London, Klopp said: “We’ve already had conversations. We spoke in the hotel last night, we’ve already had a conversation. I knew he was coming.”

Henry watched Liverpool come from behind to secure a third consecutive victory after goals from Cody Gakpo and Joel Matip ended a lead by West Ham’s Lucas Paqueta.

Matip had been recalled to the starting lineup in place of Ibrahima Konate, who was not part of the group traveling to the capital.

And explaining Konate’s absence, Klopp said: “Ibou could have played, he’s not injured. But for the past two or three weeks, he always had to take a two-day break, one day, then half a session and so on.

“I thought now we had to make sure he recovered properly so he didn’t get injured, so we left him at home completely.

READ ALSO

David Moyes left furious after the full-time whistle after Liverpool’s win over West Ham
Liverpool increased the pressure on their Champions League rivals with another Premier League win

David Moyes became furious after the full-time whistle of West Ham United’s Premier League loss to Liverpool after he felt his side had been denied a clear penalty.

The Reds fought back from one goal and scored their own through Cody Gakpo and Joel Matip to take all three points in the capital. It means Jurgen Klopp’s side have kept their Champions League hopes dim with six games left in the season.
West Ham ignored a late penalty call after the ball hit Thiago’s arm in the box before the Spanish midfielder cleared his lines to prevent Danny Ings from sniffing the goal. The hosts were still convinced that this incident should have resulted in a penalty and expressed their opinion that this should not be awarded after the match.

Moyes came onto the pitch to continue his grievances and went straight to referee Chris Kavanagh to question why this decision had been overlooked by the referees. The Hammers’ night was made worse by Nottingham Forest’s home win over Brighton, which knocked Steve Cooper’s side out of the bottom three.

West Ham are now five points clear of their last three but still have a playing credit on 18th-placed Leicester City.

Asked if he was disappointed with the penalty that never came, Moyes told BT Sport: “Huge. It’s a penalty.” The Scotsman grew increasingly frustrated and then asked the incident interviewer: “Do you think it would have been given to Anfield?”

Jurgen Klopp has revealed Liverpool were unwilling to take any chances with Ibrahima Konate ahead of tonight’s match against West Ham United, although he has allayed fears of a serious injury to the defender.

Konate has gradually overtaken Joel Matip in the pecking order of central defense and the French international had started in each of the Reds’ previous eight Premier League matches prior to tonight’s game.

Joel Matip has been chosen to replace the former RB Leipzig player, although Klopp has made it clear Liverpool are unlikely to be without the 23-year-old defender for long.

Despite these problems, captain James Ward Prowse remains the only ray of hope for Saints fans with his nine Premier League goals this season, surpassed only by Che Adams. The England international has become the club’s talisman in recent seasons, cementing his status as the Premier League’s most prolific free-kick taker since David Beckham

As the Premier League enters the home stretch of a tumultuous season, more than half of the clubs in the division have had something to play for in their last six games.

Liverpool are of course one of them, with Jurgen Klopp’s side catapulted to seventh place in the table and seven points clear of Champions League opponents Manchester United, unbeaten in their last five matches. But wherever the Reds end the 2022/23 season, the summer months will oversee a major overhaul at Anfield; mainly in midfield, with a host of new arrivals expected over the summer months after Anfield officials decided to put their summer pursuit of England and Borussia Dortmund sensation Jude Bellingham on hold, at least For now.

And while recruitment figures at Anfield have drawn two target lists depending on the strength of the Reds’ hand over the summer months, with their European status and resulting finances as key factors, there could be smarter deals for sporting director Julian Ward to be sealed before his departure at the end of June.

READ MORE: Jurgen Klopp admits ‘big transfers’ explained as ‘irregular’ situation at Liverpool

READ MORE: Klopp rules out two Liverpool players for Spurs and ‘bad bang’ for Diogo Jota

Although at a completely different stage of Klopp’s tenure at Anfield, Liverpool have successfully bought the Premier League market at cut prices, with Gini Wijnaldum (£25m, 2017), Andy Robertson (£8m, 2017), Xherdan Shaqiri (£13m, 2018) and Harvey Elliott (£4.5m, 2019) have all moved to Anfield after being relegated to England’s second division.
THE MOST READ
1

Jude Bellingham transfer: timeline of events leading up to Liverpool’s withdrawal from the race
2

What Leroy Sane asked Bayern Munich bosses to do after Sadio Mane strike and suspension
3

Roberto Firmino’s tunnel reaction to angry Sadio Mane showed the truth about Liverpool
But could anything stand in the way of similar deals for any of the clubs facing a similar fate in the coming months?   takes a look at some potential deals.

Southampton – James Ward-Prowse

Despite still having 15 points to play in the Premier League, Southampton’s near future as a Championship club looks all but sealed after three different managers, two sackings and a truly disastrous season at St Mary’s. Given their status as the division’s lashing stars this season, as they are tasked with holding up the table for the likes of Everton and Leicester City, there has been a clear lack of quality on the south coast this season with the The club’s inability to adequately replace their litter of stars with Premier League-like players has each cost Ralph Hasenhuttl, Nathan Jones and seemingly Ruben Selles.

But despite these problems, captain James Ward Prowse remains the only glimmer of hope for Saints fans with his nine Premier League goals this season, surpassed only by Che Adams. The England international has become the club’s talisman in recent seasons, solidifying his status as the Premier League’s most prolific free-kick taker since David Beckham.

Join the conversation
Add to the comments below to share your thoughts
Read the comments
At 28 and with three years left on his current contract with St Mary’s, it remains to be seen how much money Southampton will ask for their skipper, but with a place in the England squad for next summer’s European Championships surely a target for Ward Prowse this summer. it seems an opportune time for the midfielder to take the step up his recent Premier League campaigns have earned.
Furthermore, the possible arrival of Ward Prowse would help Liverpool battle the possible departure of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, James Milner, Caoimhin Kelleher and Nat Phillips from their ranks. Leicester City – James Maddison

Like Ward Prowse, James Maddison will have his sights set on Gareth Southgate’s England squad for Euro 2024 and therefore any relegation from the Premier League will almost certainly see the Leicester City midfielder extend his five-year stay at the King Power Stadium. 

But could anything stand in the way of similar deals for any of the clubs facing a similar fate in the coming months? 

Southampton – James Ward-Prowse

Despite still having 15 points to play in the Premier League, Southampton’s near future as a Championship club looks all but sealed after three different managers, two sackings and a truly disastrous season at St Mary’s.
Given their status as the division’s lashing stars this season, as they are tasked with holding up the table for the likes of Everton and Leicester City, there has been a clear lack of quality on the south coast this season with the The club’s inability to adequately replace their litter of stars with Premier League-like players has each cost Ralph Hasenhuttl, Nathan Jones and seemingly Ruben Selles.

But despite those problems, captain James Ward Prowse remains the only ray of hope for Saints fans with his nine Premier League goals this season, surpassed only by Che Adams. The England international has become the club’s talisman in recent seasons, cementing his status as the Premier League’s most prolific free-kick taker since David Beckham.

At 28 and three years from his current contract with St Mary’s, it remains to be seen what Southampton will charge his skipper but with a place in England.