“We can’t always hug the boys, we do that usually when they deserve it” – Jurgen Klopp says Liverpool attitude ‘wasn’t right’ after Fulham draw
Liverpool started their Premier League season with a 2-2 draw against newly-promoted Fulham at Craven Cottage earlier today (August 6). In a match that the Reds were expected to win comfortably, being Premier League title contenders, they struggled for long periods.
It was a surprise to see Jurgen Klopp's men trailing at the 45-minute mark after Aleksandar Mitrovic gave the hosts the lead in the 31st minute. To put it into perspective, the Reds trailed at half-time only once in the entire 2021-22 season.
When asked by the media (via Mirror) about his half-time team talk, Klopp responded:
"You can't always hug the boys. We do that usually when they deserve it and the first half - it's not that they didn't but when you start a game the opposite of how we want to start it's difficult."
He added:
"Everybody was under pressure, we couldn't really break the lines. We never had momentum, we could have won the game as we had the bigger chances but that would have been too much."
The Reds are forced to settle for a point on the opening day.
#FULLIV https://t.co/8Xi5pYutEY
Mitrovic opened the scoring for the Cottagers with a powerful header that beat Alisson Becker in goal. He out-jumped Trent Alexander-Arnold, who seemed unaware that the striker was right behind him.
Liverpool play out a draw against Fulham on the opening weekend
It was a remarkable showing for Fulham as they managed to break the stalemate twice, with Liverpool having to find equalizers twice.
After Mitrovic's first goal, the Cottagers struggled to hold onto their lead.
They eventually let it slip with a defensive lapse that saw Mohamed Salah unmarked on the right flank.
He crossed the ball for Darwin Nunez just after the hour, and the new Reds man managed to get a flick past Marek Rodak to level the score.
However, Fulham weren't done impressing their fans at home with their thrilling display. Mitrovic drove into the box to win a penalty off Virgil van Dijk, which the Serbian converted clinically.
115 - Liverpool have gained 115 points from losing positions under Jürgen Klopp in the Premier League, the most of any side since the German took over in October 2015. Resolve. https://t.co/A0aG7xSJ45
Liverpool equalised agains though as the Egyptian maestro clinched a goal from close range.
Having struggled against a team they should have smoothly dealt with, Liverpool will have to get back on the drawing board. They will next face Crystal Palace at Anfield on Monday, August 15.