Having turned in one of the worst halves of an increasingly exasperating Premier League campaign, Liverpool's reprieve at Brentford came gift wrapped with a bow on towards the end of it.
Yoane Wissa's strike to double the advantage had hit an offside Ben Mee on its way, denying the Bees a fully-deserved second goal of what had been an excellent first period for Thomas Frank's side.
Instead of taking the present for all it was worth, however, the Reds decided to toss it straight into the rubbish instead. Within seconds, a disastrous attempt to restart the game saw them lose possession in their own half and it ended with Wissa finally claiming his goal at the third time of asking.
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It left Klopp's men 2-0 down and with a mountain to climb at a time when their rambling boots were left gathering dust on Merseyside. The Gtech Stadium was bouncing at the end of Brentford's eventual 3-1 win on Monday and Liverpool can have zero complaints. They were, by some distance, second best.
And the wider questions will now rightly be asked about just how much of a stomach for the fight this team has in the all-important race for the Champions League spots.
Given the strictly non-negotiable way Fenway Sports Group absolutely insist this self-sufficient football club must be run, a failure to qualify for Europe's most lucrative competition - particularly at a time when the billions of external investors are being sought - could set Liverpool back years.
The arrival of Cody Gakpo will at least provide something that resembles the calvary, particularly for a forward line without three of its key performers just now, but the addition of a high-calibre midfielder remains glaring. That is not being wise after any event, either. It's been evident for months.
But it would be wrong to lay this setback at the door of the Boston-based owners and a lack of investment. Not this time. Klopp's men were simply out-fought and out-thought.
Ibrahima Konate was one of three changes in west London as Kostas Tsimikas replaced Andy Robertson and Fabinho returned to the squad following the birth of his son last week. France international Konate endured a tough afternoon on his comeback.
Darwin Nunez had an early chance to grab his 10th goal of the campaign in the opening moments, but after rounding David Raya from Mohamed Salah's excellent through ball the striker was denied by Mee's block on the line.
After one of the most chastening afternoons of last season was inflicted upon them here in this part of the capital, Klopp and his players should have been much better prepared for what they were subjected to.
Yet the visitors had absolutely no answer for the Bees' direct and physical approach. Their hunger to chase, harry and essentially outwork their exalted opponents was painful to watch for those in the away end.
That probably does Brentford's quality on the ball a disservice, however. Their exposing of Liverpool's woefully unprotected backline will have been exactly how Frank will have envisioned it when he drew up his tactical blueprint. Full credit to the Dane, he is fast emerging as one of the top flight's most astute and likable tacticians.
Given what was at stake for both sides, it was galling to note how much Brentford were sharper than Liverpool. Having seen Newcastle, Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham all drop points since their last involvement, Klopp's men should have had the bit between their teeth and a fire in their bellies. Neither were in place as they were picked apart time and again at set-pieces.
After Konate had the misfortune of putting through his own net on his forgettable return to the team, Wissa had the first of two goals ruled out when he arrived back from an offside position to scramble the ball home. The Brentford forward was again denied by VAR later on after he had the time to bring down a corner before finishing.
That should have been the fortunate moment Liverpool needed to shake themselves into action but inexplicably Wissa had the ball in the net for a third time just seconds later. The Reds mindlessly conceded possession from the restart and Wissa finally had his goal with a header at the back post. An overworked Alisson Becker deserved much better.
The half-time interval saw Naby Keita, Robertson and Joel Matip arrive for Tsimikas, Virgil van Dijk and Harvey Elliott. It was the catalyst for an improvement, if only all too briefly.
Nunez thought he had finally ended a frustrating spell in front of goal when he hooked one past Raya but a VAR check decreed he was just offside when he began the charge forward from Thiago Alcantara's pass. If that was unfortunate, the £64m striker's 15th shot without a goal was really poor when he dragged one well wide after a disappointing connection inside the penalty area.
Before then, Liverpool had pulled one back through Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's header from Trent Alexander-Arnold's pinpoint cross, but that would be as good as it got for the Reds, whose toiling from the 60th minute onwards saw Brentford barely break sweat.
Gakpo's integration can't come soon enough for Klopp who surveyed a substitutes' bench that was without the injured trio of Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino at a time when he was in desperate, dire need of inspiration.
Bryan Mbuemo had Brentford's third when Konate slipped attempting to clear a long ball over the top. The World Cup finalist wanted a free-kick and the entire Liverpool team surrounded Stuart Attwell in protest. It was the moment that summed it all up from their perspective; a forlorn, sorry attempt to delay the inevitable.
Add Liverpool to Brentford's growing list of scalps that also includes Manchester City and United this term. They were fully deserving of another major victory. Are Liverpool really serious about this top-four push? We're about to find out.
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