#360view: Klopp learning on the job at Anfield

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  • Tough job: Jurgen Klopp.

    Jurgen Klopp was distraught after the West Ham defeat, Liverpool’s supporters equally so, but that frustration has dissipated slightly with the distraction of Cup football.

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    It’s been an infuriatingly inconsistent Premier League campaign for the Reds. Since taking the helm after Brendan Rodgers’ dismissal last October, the air in Klopp’s inflated hype has quickly escaped and left in its wake a harsh reality.

    Yes, there have been signs that the club are moving in the right direction, away wins at Manchester City and Chelsea more than justifying that, but despite the glimpses of promise, there’s been a degree of stagnation.

    Those two victories in isolation appear to be exceptions to the rule, rather than the definition. The same can even be said of the gutsy, but important win in a big game at Stoke on Tuesday night. Though it provided a brief antidote to surrenders against West Ham, Watford and Newcastle, there are still problems to solve and lessons for the charismatic German to be learned.

    Defensively, the Reds are on their last legs, literally, those last legs being their sole fit defender Kolo Toure, who even wound up with cramp in the win at the Britannia after 90 minutes of flinging his body in front of anything that moved.

    The long injury list has shown no signs of shortening anytime soon and although it was something the German wanted to avoid, dipping into the transfer market this month is now a matter of urgency. Dejan Lovren, Martin Skrtel, Joe Gomez and Mamadou Sakho all make up the defensive casualties.

    Even on top of the brittle back four, Klopp must still find goals and craft a midfield shape for crucial clashes with Exeter, Arsenal and Manchester United within the next 11 days.

    For a manager who emphasises the importance of training and the ability to assess and tweak his squad, the unsustainable and unforgiving hectic schedule has become almost unmanageable. What this period of the season, and to a degree the win at Stoke, does do is speed up the marriage between Klopp and English football.

    The four domestic defeats under Klopp’s tenure, Crystal Palace, Newcastle, Watford and West Ham, exposed the vulnerability of a foreign coach coming into the Premier League. Sides like City and Chelsea can easily be considered European teams. Their escapades in the Champions League will have meant Klopp is well aware of their strengths and weaknesses but what about the other teams?

    Jamie Carragher alluded to this in his analysis of his former club. He said: “If you want to make an impact in the Premier League, you’re going to play the top four or five teams, eight to 10 times a season. The rest, the other 30 games, is what the Premier League is about. Liverpool have struggled in those games.”

    A clear example is the defeat to West Ham as tactically they appeared ill-prepared for the nature of a challenge that seemed quite obvious.

    Allowing Andy Carroll a free run at crosses hinted that lessons are being learned on the job. Still, there’s every reason for optimism with the club in four competitions. They have a manager who knows how to win the big games and once he’s figured out the rest of them, then Klopp and the Kop really will be smiling.

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