Determined to make the most of the winter break, Jürgen Klopp gave his players some time out from the grind, a six-day breather from the brutal Premier League schedule. Klopp headed to Dubai where, apart from playing padel with his assistant, Pep Lijnders, he enjoyed some downtime, even if half of his Liverpool team were on the same seven-hour flight home.
Presumably in those moments at the net, the small talk in between serves, Klopp and his right-hand man pondered how his team would resume on their return to business. The answer? Rather emphatically, after a slow start. Liverpool are now five points clear at the top – Manchester City, of course, in their rearview mirror – after clinical, crisp doubles by Darwin Núñez and Diogo Jota.
