Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp expecting ‘solid’ West Ham United to be tricky opponents
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Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp believes his team have a "different" mentality this season after bouncing back to win in four of their six matches.
PHOTO: REUTERS
LONDON – Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp believes West Ham United are one of the English Premier League’s strongest teams, and urged his side to be at their best against last season’s Europa Conference League winners.
The Hammers, who sold key midfielder Declan Rice to Arsenal in the close season, travel to Anfield on Sunday having started the season in fine form, winning three out of five matches.
Unbeaten Liverpool have four wins, but Klopp warned his players not to be complacent against the team managed by veteran boss David Moyes.
“There are so many extremely strong opponents, West Ham is one of them. I’m happy for David (Moyes) that he really built this team now over a few years. Even with Declan Rice out, they look really good,” he said on Friday.
“With all the other guys they had already, it looks really solid and that makes it really tricky. It means for us we have to be the best version of ourselves.”
The Reds will be feeling confident, however, as Klopp believes his team have a “different” mentality this season.
Besides their four league wins, they kicked off their Europa League campaign with a 3-1 victory over LASK on Thursday.
That was the fourth time in six matches that Liverpool had bounced back after trailing. Despite the early setbacks, strong second-half performances have inspired wins over Bournemouth, Newcastle United, Wolverhampton Wanderers and LASK.
Klopp is delighted with Liverpool’s resilience after last season’s disappointing campaign in which they finished fifth, but he is not ready to use the “mentality monsters” tag he bestowed on his Champions League and Premier League winners from 2019 and 2020.
Said Klopp: “When I said that phrase (mentality monsters) at that time, I just remember watching a game and thinking, ‘Oh my god, how did they come back?’ Mentality? That is something we will create. What we have now is a competitive mood.”
Liverpool will have Virgil van Dijk back in defence after the Dutchman missed the last two domestic games through suspension. Trent Alexander-Arnold and Thiago Alcantara are still injured.
Moyes, meanwhile, is preparing his side for a “big, hard game”.
“The crowd and the stadium play a big role at Anfield. But in recent years, we’ve given them tough games and we’ll try to give them a good game on Sunday,” he said. REUTERS, AFP
