Krawietz Getting Liverpool Ready for "Big Challenge"

Certain patterns have begun to appear at Jürgen Klopp's Liverpool since his appointment in October last year. They are still quite terrible at defending set pieces, but have started scoring from them recently. They have gotten better at not giving up when chasing a game, but still haven't quite figured out how to see a game out comfortably. And while they excel when up against teams that like keeping possession and playing the ball out from the back, they struggle mightily against teams that sit back, attack with long balls and counters, and make the midfield battle a frenetic war.

On the bright side, assistant coach Peter Krawietz and his team of video analysts have a good idea of what kind of game Thursday's opponents Augsburg prefer. On the other hand, it's not the one Liverpool prefer to face.

"Augsburg are a special team and it will be a tough game, and we know this because they are a tough opponent.

"We know them very well. We know the coach, their style of play and we know it is a team which is very hard-working, very compact in defence [and] quick in attacking the opponent with a clear idea. We know this plan and now we have to get these answers.

"The message is that they won't change their style of play. It's always the same with high intensity of play. I think we will be prepared for this.

"You can take the [previous] results and say 'it will be easy' but I can promise it won't be easy. It's a big game for them and something like an historical game for them against LFC. This will be a big, big challenge for us."

Augsburg have yet to win in 2016, which sounds worse than it is, as they've only played 4 matches this year on account of the German winter break. They are struggling in the league after being the surprise package of the year last season, and the addition of European football has seemingly affected their domestic form. This all reads as good news on paper, but the reality is that this is - as Krawietz alludes to in the interview - exactly the kind of team profile that has given Liverpool fits this season. Hopefully, the return of strikers who can stretch the field and keep the opposition backline honest can be a difference maker in the same way they were against Aston Villa on Sunday.

For the first time since mid-December, Liverpool have a full week between matches, and with both of those being against the same side, conditions are in place for accurate and effective game-planning. The analysts have done their job, and it is up to the players to go out and execute on Thursday night,