LONDON – Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is once again looking for another “push” to get their season back on track, starting with an English Premier League home clash against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Wednesday.
The Reds have had a topsy-turvy couple of weeks, a reflection of how their campaign has been.
Following a 3-0 loss at Wolves in early February, they had looked to turn the tide with consecutive 2-0 wins over Everton and Newcastle United. But that progress was halted by a 5-2 Champions League last-16 loss to Real Madrid on Feb 21, and a 0-0 stalemate at Crystal Palace over the weekend.
“It is a super important week, we cannot ignore that,” said Klopp, referring to the Wolves game and also a clash with rivals Manchester United on Sunday.
“We have two home games, and tomorrow (is) the first one. I would love to give the season a little push in this week and we need results for that and for results we need good performances.”
Liverpool are seventh in the table, nine points behind fourth-placed Tottenham (45), who have played two games more.
Despite the draw with Palace, the Reds have three clean sheets in a row in the league and they would be facing a Wolves side who have scored just 18 goals in 24 games – the second lowest among all teams.
Klopp’s men have taken 10 points from the last 12 at Anfield, losing just one of their last 34 home league games.
The Liverpool boss also said that his men have learnt from their loss to Wolves.
“We have important information from that game we need to use. We have to focus on ourselves. The main difference is we will play at Anfield and we have to make that count,” he said.
“Nothing I saw in training suggests we don’t have a chance. We know a lot about each other and we know it won’t be easy. We have to make sure we are ready.”
Darwin Nunez is a doubt for the clash, while Thiago Alcantara, Calvin Ramsay, Luis Diaz and Joe Gomez remain sidelined.
Wolves are 15th in the standings and only three points clear of the relegation zone. However, they head to Anfield with a good away form, losing to only Manchester City in their last six matches on the road.
Julen Lopetegui’s men drew 1-1 with Fulham over the weekend, losing Matheus Cunha to an ankle injury in the process. The Brazilian forward is unlikely to play against Liverpool, joining Hwang Hee-chan, Sasa Kalajdzic and Chiquinho in the treatment room.
Lopetegui joined the club only in November and has won five of his 13 matches in charge.
Despite slow progress, Matheus Nunes believes the team feel “more confident” under the Spaniard.
“We try to work every day to improve the way we play,” said the Portuguese midfielder.
“We’re more confident now and having better results helps as well. We just have to carry on.”
