“I hate those situations, we should have sorted that earlier” – Klopp on 'lucky' Liverpool incident during Newcastle win
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has admitted his team were ‘lucky’ in the Ryan Fraser incident, stating he despises situations that require a last-ditch tackle.
Liverpool right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold had to tackle Newcastle forward Fraser dangerously inside the box in the 64th minute to keep the visitors from scoring. There were strong shouts for a penalty, but the VAR deemed Alexander-Arnold’s challenge to be fair.
The visiting fans inside the stadium did not agree with the decision and kept booing Liverpool players and the referee throughout the match. To make matters worse, the 'villain' of the match, Trent Alexander-Arnold, hit the back of the net against the Magpies in the 87th minute.
Picking up the ball at the edge of the box, the Englishman put his foot through and rattled the netting in style.
Liverpool 3-1 Newcastle FT:
7': Jonjo Shelvey
21': Diogo Jota
25': Mohamed Salah
87': Trent Alexander-Arnold
Three points for the Reds. 👌 https://t.co/7MsP5sU62Y
Alexander-Arnold’s goal saw Liverpool register a comfortable 3-1 win over Newcastle United and move within a point of league leaders Manchester City.
Despite the win, Klopp could not help but think about Alexander-Arnold’s tackle and claimed Liverpool should have dealt with the situation much sooner. He also admitted the Reds were lucky to get away scot-free, as Alexander-Arnold was forced to tackle from the wrong side.
Speaking to BBC Sport, the Liverpool boss said:
“Lucky! Unfortunately, you have to say that because it should not come in a situation where Trent has to make a sliding tackle from the wrong side. I hate those situations, we should have sorted that earlier. If we concede a penalty or goal then it is unlikely, he would score in the other situation. You have to sort the important situations and then you are ready for the nice ones as well.”
Liverpool first English club to register 2000 top-flight wins
With their nail-biting win over Newcastle United on Thursday night, Liverpool became the first English team in history to register 2000 wins in the first-division.
Diogo Jota, Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold hit the back of the net to induct Liverpool into the 2000-win club.
Liverpool are the first team in English football history to win 2,000 top-flight league games.
Football heritage. 🔴 https://t.co/MC5C1YNzK1
Arsenal are the closest to Liverpool’s tally, with the Gunners registering 1927 English top-division wins in their history. The Merseyside club's bitter rivals Manchester United, on the other hand, have only amassed 1857 top-flight wins so far.