Klopp frustrated with Liverpool defeat

Jurgen Klopp cut a frustrated figure after Liverpool’s 3-2 defeat at the hands of Southampton on Sunday and he feels they should have killed the game off before the break.

Goals from Philippe Coutinho and Daniel Sturridge saw Liverpool go two goals up, but they squandered a number of opportunities to add a third.

Fraser Forster denied Sturridge and Joe Allen before two goals from Sadio Mane and one from Graziano Pelle after the interval eventually saw Southampton secure the full three points.

“We played some brilliant football in the first half, but we had to kill the game off,” Klopp told reporters. “We should have scored two or three more goals in the first half, that was possible. We caused them a lot of problems.

“We have to accept that the game changed after the break. Things like that can happen. They controlled the game in the second half. There were a lot of fights for second balls and we were not compact enough. They scored goals and we didn’t, that is how football is.”

Klopp took off Dejan Lovren at half-time in favour of Martin Skrtel and subsequently revealed that he he feared a red card for the Croatia international.

“I had to change Dejan because he was already on a yellow card,” he added. “And there had been that penalty situation [with Shane Long]. It looked a little bit like the referee was keeping an eye on him.

“So I decided to anticipate that.”

Klopp was seen talking to Christian Benteke after the final whistle, with the Belgium international having missed a fine chance to make it 3-1.

“I was not angry with Benteke for missing that chance,” Klopp stressed. “I talked with him after the game, because I have to talk with the players, that is my job.”