Liverpool Manager Jurgen Klopp admitted that the draw against West Brom in the Premier League feels like defeat.
The Reds scored early in the game as Sadio Mane found the back of the net in the 12th minute in a dominant first half performance, Klopp side couldn’t get the second goal of the game before the visitor equalized in the final 10 minutes of the match.
Roberto Firmino went close to nodding home a late winner, but he was denied by a fine save from Sam Johnstone.
When asked in a press conference if the game feels like a loss, Klopp said: “Yes it does, but I know we have a point more than before so that’s completely fine.”
“The problem that I have is I think West Brom deserved the point – it’s our fault, but they deserved a point in the second half.”
“First half was a really strange game; I don’t know the stats yet but it looks like it was 90/10 possession or something like this. I can’t remember a counter-attack or whatever, we were just playing around and it’s a massive challenge, I know that, to stay on track and do it and do it and do it again.”
“But we should have done it because on the other hand side it is exactly the same challenge to defend like West Brom defends for 95 minutes, because they didn’t change a little bit when they were 1-0 down.”
“First five minutes of the second half, they had more situations than they had in the entire first half and we could have sorted that by passing just easy, simple, quick to the next player. Prepare the position for the channel ball, also the runs and these kind of things.”
“So we could have done it and we didn’t and that’s why it’s our fault that it’s in the end a 1-1 and not a 1-0 or 2-0 or whatever. So that’s what we have to accept and we do that, of course.”
The Reds remain three points clear at the top of the Premier League ahead of Wednesday’s trip to Newcastle United as that represents their final fixture of 2020 and Klopp is hopeful that his side will respond positively to the disappointing draw against West Brom.
