Jurgen Klopp has claimed that 'pretty much everything' was 'prepared' for Newcastle United to defeat his Liverpool side because of the Magpies' remarkable form at St James' Park.
Liverpool ended Newcastle's six-game winning streak at home on Saturday thanks to a 19th-minute goal from Naby Keita as the quadruple-chasing Reds went top for a few hours following a 1-0 win. It was Newcastle's first league defeat at St James' in 2022 and just Eddie Howe's second top-flight loss at home since taking charge of the Magpies last November.
Howe has picked up more than two-thirds of his points to date at home and, given the electric atmosphere inside the stadium, that should not come as a surprise. In fact, Klopp admitted it had been an 'incredibly difficult' game for his side after playing Villarreal in the Champions League midweek.
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"Coming here, team in form, six home wins on the bounce, great weather, everybody in a good mood, pretty much everything is prepared for another home win," he told reporters. "The only group who wanted to avoid that were my players.
"It was an outstanding football game. First 15 minutes, we had to adapt slightly a little bit. That's normal. Newcastle changed a little bit, put Joelinton on the left side, and kept the ball there, went for second balls.
"We struggled a bit, tried to adapt to it, did better. When the ball was on the ground, we were really good. I really liked how we played, how we kept them quiet. I can't remember a lot of counter-attacks."
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