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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
Sport
Matt Smith

Why Jurgen Klopp 'pointed one finger' at Diogo Jota at Liverpool trained ground

Diogo Jota's injury-time winner in Liverpool's 4-3 triumph over Tottenham Hotspur in April sparked wild celebrations around Anfield, to such an extent that Jurgen Klopp even suffered a hamstring injury in a moment of unbridled joy.

For those who may have forgotten, after racing into a three-goal lead within 15 minutes thanks to goals from Curtis Jones, Luis Diaz and Mohammed Salah, it seemed inconceivable that the Reds would not claim all three points on that day.

Nevertheless, a shaky second period allowed managerless Spurs back into proceedings and they appeared to have snatched a point when former Everton attacker Richarlison equalised in added time.

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In true Liverpool fashion, however, the game was not over. Lucas Moura's horrendous error allowed Jota to convert in what must go down as one of the craziest endings to a Premier League fixture in recent seasons.

As the cameras panned to Klopp his reaction was one of pain though, as he hobbled down the Anfield touchline grasping his hamstring. In his next pre-match press conference Klopp claimed: "No scan or ultrasound needed. I have a 2C, which if I was a player would be six weeks out."

And in a recent interview with FourFourTwo, Jota revealed that he was, in fact, on the receiving end of blame from his manager despite scoring an all-important goal.

"He did, actually! [blame him for the injury]" Jota replied. "I can't tell you what he said, but when he saw me the next day, he just pointed one finger at me...

"For me, [the winner] was a great moment. I did score winners at Anfield in my first season [2020/21], but there was no crowd. Everybody was telling me, 'oh, you've just scored a winner in front of the Kop - it would have been amazing if the fans were here'. I needed to wait a couple more years to actually get that feeling. Having that moment was really special - I'll remember it for a long time.

"I didn’t even notice the manager injuring himself at the time. When I arrived in the dressing room, I already had a few friends sending me the video link of him pulling his hamstring after my goal. You cannot write a script like that. I think it didn’t bother him because it was a key moment for the team. It's a good story to tell!"

Injuries were, unfortunately, a common theme during Jota's campaign, too, as he would make just 22 appearances across the season. Having always impressed when fit and available for the Reds, however, Klopp will be hoping the 26-year-old can feature on a regular basis as his side look to respond from an underwhelming showing last term.

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