Jürgen Klopp has laid bare the punishing demands on players by revealing Liverpool will head into their top-of-the-table fixture with Arsenal having trained for only 135 minutes in 10 days.
Arsenal’s visit to Anfield is Liverpool’s fourth fixture since 14 December, when Klopp rang the changes for the final Europa League group game at Union Saint-Gilloise.
Liverpool’s players have since had three recovery sessions, after games against Union SG, Manchester United and West Ham, and three “match day minus one” training sessions, which are reduced to 35 minutes at this time of year owing to the intense schedule. With a half-hour session added on to the post-West Ham recovery, Liverpool’s total training time since returning from Belgium stands at just under two and a half hours.
Klopp made it clear that he did not intend to bemoan a specific Liverpool problem but to highlight the demands on all clubs. He finds it incredible that West Ham host Manchester United at 12.30pm on Saturday, for example, having faced the same Thursday-Sunday-Wednesday schedule as his team.
The Liverpool manager said: “Yesterday [Thursday] we were out for recovery and a little bit of training, half an hour. We played Wednesday. Tuesday shorter than normal session, set pieces and tactical stuff, 35 minutes. Monday recovery. Sunday game. Saturday, MD-1, 35 minutes max. Friday recovery. Thursday game.
“I saw that West Ham play the 12.30 tomorrow. You have to ask the question: is that right? You’re playing a competition where each team should get the same treatment. People think it’s all right to put West Ham in that game and criticise David Moyes in the week when he makes changes [against Liverpool in the Carabao Cup]. What was his alternative? We have to make changes otherwise you cannot get through this.
“We play at 5.30pm tomorrow – that means the boys sleep longer. West Ham get up at 7.30 and at 9 they throw in the noodles! How is that fair? Why can’t they look at that, whoever is doing it? For once, put your [club] shirt away and just think about general football problems. Somebody has to change. They say: ‘Well yes but you signed the [broadcasting] contract.’ It has nothing to do with that.”
One point separates Arsenal and Liverpool at the top and Trent Alexander-Arnold believes there are similarities between Mikel Arteta’s leaders and the Liverpool team pipped to the title in 2019. The experience of being in last season’s title race, and falling short, will help Arsenal this time, says Liverpool’s vice-captain.
“They are a young, exciting team who last year probably lacked experience winning, more than anything,” Alexander-Arnold said. “That’s quite similar to what we were in that season when we were nipped to it by [Manchester] City by one point. Those experiences teach you a lot. It teaches you how to win. They will be bringing that from last season and it is showing in their consistency. They deserve to be near the top. So do we. It will be an exciting game.”
Liverpool followed up the near-miss of 2018-19 by winning their first league title for 30 years the next season. Alexander-Arnold believes the addition of Declan Rice has enhanced Arsenal’s prospects of following suit this season.
“Whether it is him or how they adapted, I feel they have gone up a level this season,” he said. “They’re very consistent and they are winning in a controlled manner. It is different to how we are winning a lot of games. A couple of our games have been last minute, or down to 10 men, winning in different ways. It feels like they are winning in a different way.
“He has been a big part of that. I have shared the pitch with him with England and know what he offers and brings to a team. You can see it in how he plays; breaking up the play, getting the team up the pitch and a lot of the dirty work. He is also very confident on the ball. I am sure we will have a gameplan, not only to try to stop him but to also stop Arsenal, as will they with us.”
Klopp has confirmed he expects Mohamed Salah and Wataru Endo to depart for the Africa Cup of Nations and Asian Cup respectively after Liverpool’s Premier League game against Newcastle on 1 January.
