Exclusive: Ex Liverpool & Man Utd ace on bad Premier League start for Klopp

on August 23, 2022 at 5:11 pm

Liverpool have started the Premier League season very slowly so far, with a 2-1 defeat at Man United the latest disappointment on Monday.

We spoke to former midfielder Paul Ince, who played for both clubs in his career, to get his thoughts on what’s going wrong for Jurgen Klopp’s side.

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Where did it all go wrong for Liverpool last night?

Liverpool are very weak at the moment having lost a few players through suspension and injury. Last night, they never got started and were very slow – much like the season opener against Fulham and they got punished for that.

It was always going to be about who managed to score the first goal and Man United were fantastic. The tempo was unbelievable.

Liverpool fans shouldn’t be worried as we’re only three games into the Premier League season but they have to be aware that it isn’t just a two horse race for the title now, there are other teams in the mix and they’re teams that you expect to stay there.

If the Reds don’t get back to winning ways quickly then they could be out of the title race. Everyone knows they’ll hit form again, but it’s a matter of how far behind they are when they do.

What do you make of Trent Alexander-Arnold right now?

Trent is a world-class player and he’s shown that time and time again. People sometimes question his defensive ability but Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson are Liverpool’s sources of power and Erik ten Hag nullified them really well. He got it spot on.

You only have to look at Liverpool’s game against Crystal Palace as well to know that, if you time your runs right, teams can get in-behind Jurgen Klopp’s team very easily.

Van Djik put in another poor performance – why do you think that is?

Virgil Van Djik’s perfect partner in defence is Joel Matip. As a manager you’re always trying to find the best partnership and Van Djik and Matip are just that for Liverpool.

Mentally and physically Liverpool are tired from pre-season. They’ve had to fly all around the world, adjusting to different time zones all to play pre-season friendlies. You never had to do that when I was playing, it was more or less all local.

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Is there a genuine chance that Liverpool don’t challenge for the title this year?

I can’t see Liverpool not challenging for the Premier League title – they’re one of the best teams in the world. When teams lose important players it has an effect on the team and that’s what is happening with Liverpool at the moment.

It’s not going to be easy if you keep dropping points while the rest of the top four are winning but I’ve got no qualms with Liverpool – they could easily chalk off ten wins in a row but they need to get their missing players back.

Everyone saw the difference at the moment when Man United subbed on Cristiano Ronaldo and Liverpool were bringing on Fabio Carvalho.

People think that Liverpool need a midfielder, do you agree?

I don’t know who is out there to bring in within the remainder of the transfer window. Liverpool’s recruitment over the last few years has been fantastic so I’m sure they have their eyes on a midfielder. You can’t rely on James Milner and Jordan Henderson to play all season.

How would you assess Nunez’s start to life at Anfield?

People need to give Darwin Nunez time. There’s a vast difference between the Portuguese league and the Premier League. Just because he scored 20+ goals over there, doesn’t mean he can do that for Liverpool.

It’s a lot of money to pay for someone who is un-tried and it’s very different if you’re buying someone like Erling Haaland. When you think about who you’d rather have, I’d take Haaland over Nunez all day long.

The jury’s still out for Nunez, but give him time and he’ll score goals because of the way Liverpool play.

How costly could letting Sadio Mane leave be – he’s got four goals at Bayern already!

Sadio Mane was integral to this Liverpool team and Liverpool haven’t replaced him. Losing him was a major, major blow and I was surprised that he left. He’ll score plenty of goals in Germany and whether it has a long-lasting effect on Liverpool, I’m sure we’ll see at the end of the season.

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