Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool farewell tour begins with 5-2 win over Norwich

LONDON – The long goodbye for Jurgen Klopp began on Jan 28 with a 5-2 FA Cup fourth-round win over Championship side Norwich City at Anfield.

With just 20-odd games left with the German at the helm after his bombshell announcement in midweek that he would depart at season’s end, the Kop was awash with banners and flags featuring his likeness.

Unsurprisingly, the reception for Klopp when he strode out of the tunnel and the rendition of You’ll Never Walk Alone felt more raucous and poignant than usual.

The 56-year-old was quick to tone down the sentiment: “I get it, it’s very emotional. I just have to make sure that I don’t get on that side of it. I said they don’t have to do it because I know our relationship already.

“In the games, we need to be warriors and not celebrate the old man on the side lines. First match after the news and we can get used to it.”

Once the actual football got under way, Liverpool were quick to open the scoring after 16 minutes with a goal made in the club’s academy.

Midfielder James McConnell, who at 19 was making his first start, pinged a well-placed ball onto Curtis Jones’ head and the 22-year-old local lad angled his header into the far corner.

But second-tier Norwich equalised six minutes later with their first real chance through another header. From their first corner, Gabriel Sara’s delivery arrived at the near post for Ben Gibson to direct it past Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker.

It didn’t take long for Liverpool to regain the lead, however. On 28 minutes, another academy product – Northern Irish right-back Conor Bradley – fed Darwin Nunez in the box to make it two.

The Uruguayan forward is the first player in Europe’s Big Five leagues to hit double figures in goals (10) and assists (10) this season without penalties.

Bradley should have got another assist two minutes later but Cody Gakpo missed a sitter while Ryan Gravenberch’s effort was cleared off the line before half-time.

Eight minutes after the break, it was 3-1 after Gibson did not get enough purchase on Jones’ raking long pass, allowing Diogo Jota to fire home.

The Reds wrapped up the tie on 63 minutes when substitute Virgil van Dijk scored his second goal of the season with a powerful header off a Dominik Szoboszlai corner.

But Norwich, ninth in the Championship, reduced the arrears in the 69th minute with a thunderbolt from outside the box from substitute Borja Sainz, only for Gravenberch to restore their three-goal advantage with a header in added time.

Jones said of Klopp’s impending exit: “Just carry on. We have our goals that we’ve set and nothing has changed. It’s sad for the whole club but he is a man and we respect that... now the news is out, we’ll be giving it more.”

Norwich City manager David Wagner, Klopp’s best man at his wedding, also had mixed feelings.

“It wasn’t nice to be the first one on his goodbye tour here in England which unfortunately didn’t end with the result we hoped but at the end of the day I wish him all the best and all the luck which he needs.”

In an earlier tie, Wolverhampton Wanderers ran out 2-0 winners over West Bromwich Albion, but only after the match was interrupted due to clashes involving the two West Midlands sides’ supporters.

Premiership side Wolves were leading 2-0 when projectiles were hurled onto one end of the pitch in the 82nd minute, sparking a brawl in a corner at The Hawthorns.

Fans spilled onto the pitch, prompting players to leave the field.

After a suspension of 38 minutes, the players returned and the match resumed, with the clock reset to 77min 10sec, the time that Matheus Cunha had scored Wolves’ second goal.

“We are disappointed with any type of incident like that,” West Brom manager Carlos Corberan told ITV.

“Everything before the incident was unbelievable, between both clubs it was very special and incidents like that we need to avoid.”

Wolves manager Gary O’Neil called the disturbance “really sad”.

“Up until that point it was a good tie with good atmosphere,” he told ITV. “How people behave at football is really important and we need to look at that, make sure everyone is safe. When we came back out, the atmosphere had gone, it was really sad to see.”

“I know that the West Brom players’ families were in that area, which is a concern. I really hope everyone’s OK.” REUTERS