Liverpool faces Wolves at home on Saturday night as they begin their FA Cup defence. The Reds hope to rebound from a heartbreaking loss at Brentford on Monday.
Ahead of the third round, Klopp spoke on various topics in a press conference. Here is what he said.
Klopp discusses scraping FA cup replays
The discussions about eliminating FA Cup replays have been discussed openly by Jurgen Klopp.
Leading individuals are discussing reformatting the FA Cup before the third round, which may involve eliminating replays as part of the ‘A new deal for football’ plans.
Klopp said he favoured lessening calendar congestion and that different solutions should be developed to aid clubs at the bottom of the pyramid.
During the pre-game press conference, he stated that “we need to find other answers.”
“Clubs that play every three days cannot experience issues with the lifelines for small clubs. How frequently does a smaller club succeed in this circumstance?”
“Smaller clubs have the same right to exist; nobody wants to kill them. But we need more games to fix the issue.”
? Jurgen Klopp on potentially scrapping FA Cup replays:
“90 minutes and penalties – great. I would be in favour of it." ? pic.twitter.com/SyhlBAXVen
— Anfield Watch (@AnfieldWatch) January 6, 2023
Jurgen Klopp confirms the extent of Van Dijk’s injury
Due to a hamstring injury sustained at the beginning of this week, Virgil van Dijk will be out for “more than a month,” according to Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.
As the Reds were humiliated by Brentford in the Premier League, Van Dijk was forced to leave the game at halftime. It was later discovered that the problem was more serious than initially believed.
The Liverpool manager remarked, “Virg was a surprise for us and a major blow,” before this weekend’s FA Cup third-round matchup against Wolves.
“The prognosis was fairly dire. Although it’s been almost a month, I hope it goes quickly. It’s challenging, but for him, recent years have seen a great quantity of gaming.”
With that lead time, the earliest Van Dijk might come back is in the middle of February. Liverpool has five games between now and then, starting with the Wolves’ FA Cup visit and ending with the Merseyside derby on February 13.
A blow for Liverpool as Jurgen Klopp confirms Virgil van Dijk is out for more than a month ? pic.twitter.com/gCwFDPgZpy
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) January 6, 2023
Klopp on Cody Gakpo’s debut
Cody Gakpo, a recruit for Liverpool, has been described as “very promising and fit” by manager Jurgen Klopp ahead of the probable debut for the Reds this weekend.
Before playing Wolves in the FA Cup on Saturday, Klopp expressed confidence in the 23-year-potential old’s contribution.
The Liverpool manager said, “Cody has been in for two full training days and is a joy to watch, to be honest.”
“In our circumstances, having a player who is quite natural at a lot of things and knows where the goal is is great. He is ecstatic and loving every moment right now.”
“Cody seems incredibly healthy and promising. He finds the sessions challenging because they are unique. Although joining from a different league is always challenging, we anticipate great results.”
Jurgen Klopp on Cody Gakpo:
"Yes, he is in contention. He will be involved in the squad, of course. How exactly we will have to decide in the next few hours, but that's fine." #lfc [lfc] pic.twitter.com/6E1ReriMyL
— Anfield Watch (@AnfieldWatch) January 6, 2023
Klopp addresses Liverpool’s midfield issues
The midfield for Liverpool has received criticism this year, and it delivered another subpar performance in the loss against Brentford.
Although Klopp acknowledged that his squad is having trouble, he insisted that Liverpool’s issues are due to poor organisation.
“There could be an issue. Not really in the previous game. We gave up goals from set pieces and counterattacks. It all comes down to organisation and how well we work together to complete the task.”
“Most of the time, it works out; if not, Alisson comes up with saves. Even in the better games, these scenarios were there.”
“It is my responsibility to clarify,” he said. “It is not a matter of wanting it; rather, it is a matter of timing and our proximity.”
“If something doesn’t work out, one player, two players, or three players may not be acting appropriately. It needs more awareness.”
