Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has been told to stop ‘whinging’ about the tactics of other teams and to start getting tough with his own players.
The Reds chief was angry at Brentford’s tactics during Monday night’s 3-1 defeat in west London, accusing the Bees of ‘stretching the rules’ during set-piece situations.
He claimed Ibrahima Konate was fouled immediately before Bryan Mbuemo made it 3-1, insisting that VAR was ‘hiding’ during that controversial phase of play.
The defeat left Liverpool still sitting sixth in the table, seven points behind Manchester United in fourth.
And speaking about Klopp’s comments after the Brentford debacle, former Leeds forward Noel Whelan told the Anfield boss to focus on his own team’s struggles and stop moaning about the opposition.
Whelan told Football Insider: “He [Klopp] needs to stop whinging.
“I’m sick of managers coming out after games and complaining about aggressiveness – it’s a game of football.
“If Liverpool had that nasty streak, he wouldn’t be complaining.
“Defeats and losing games tend to bring the worst out of managers – and Klopp is just picking at little things.
“You’re taught from a young age to be aggressive at set pieces and win your one-on-one battles. If they can’t do that, then that’s not a problem for Brentford.
“Brentford just wanted it the most.
“Instead of whinging about it, Klopp has got to teach his side to be stronger. I’m sick of it – he should be whinging at his own players.”
No Van Dijk for Klopp to whinge at
One Liverpool player he won’t be able to potentially whinge at for a little while is Virgil van Dijk.
The talismanic centre-back suffered a hamstring injury in the game against Brentford and is facing an extended spell on the sidelines.
That news could not have come at a worse time for Klopp as the Reds look to reignite their season to secure Champions League football.
There has even been talk of a move for major Tottenham target Milan Skriniar to offset Van Dijk’s loss.
The Inter Milan star has been one of the stand-out defenders in Serie A for the last couple of seasons and would naturally slot in as Van Dijk’s replacement.
However, the likelihood of Liverpool actually spending on another defender appears pretty slim. To that end, Joel Matip, Ibrahima Konate, Joe Gomez and Nat Phillips will have to shoulder the load for now.
The Reds are back in action on Saturday evening when they host Wolves in the FA Cup third round.
SOURCE: teamtalk.com
