Klopp Talk: The Most Used Word Was ‘Clean Sheet’!

The Liverpool manager made a total of seven changes from the team that strolled through the Merseyside derby in midweek with the same result: an emphatic victory via a three-goal margin.

Crucially different on this occasion was that the league leaders’ 3-0 triumph over a depleted Cherries side was their first in 14 matches that came with a much-desired clean sheet.

“Happy about it, yes. Impressed, no,” the Reds boss responded in his post-match interview to the question of whether he was pleased about the clean sheet. “It’s not that I don’t think we are not able to get clean sheets. For different reasons we haven’t had many so far.

”The most used word the boys were saying in the dressing room afterward was ‘Clean sheet! Clean sheet!’ and everyone was shouting around,” the German did admit with a grin.

“We want to have them but first we want to win football games and if at the end you concede for whatever reason it’s not the biggest concern. If you defend bad that’s more the problem.

“We defended really well, we attacked really well.”

Worryingly, Dejan Lovren went off in the first half with what appeared to be a knock, leaving Virgil Van Dijk and Joe Gomez as the only first team center halves available in the immediate short term. While Klopp didn’t provide an update on the Croatian’s status, he did reveal that others are ailing in the squad.

“After the Everton game we lost through little, little injuries but enough not to be involved today, Gini Wijnaldum and Adam Lallana, who both played exceptionally in that game. Having solutions [like Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain] is necessary.”