The post-match interviews have become post-match inquests. Jurgen Klopp has a capacity to state the obvious in a way that nonetheless feels revealing and, after Leeds won at Anfield for the first time since 2001, when the German was a couple of months into his managerial career at Mainz, he reflected: “It is no secret that pretty much everybody on the pitch can play better football.”
He was talking about the game, but he could have been discussing the season. Liverpool’s malaise feels hard to address because it is multifaceted. It includes injuries and ageing, the failure to buy a midfielder in the summer, encounters with inspired opponents, a physical fatigue and a mental hangover. Liverpool, who used to deliver wonderful moments to win matches a few months ago, now have a self-destructive streak. Klopp’s attempts to tackle a troubled time have been a series of quick fixes, changing shape or personnel to solve one problem but in turn creating another. Formulas have looked flawed, with Liverpool often lacking the authority and aura they used to exhibit.
