Klopp: “West Brom deserved it. I don’t like saying it, but it’s the truth”

Jurgen Klopp was forced to accept that West Brom were worthy winners as his side crashed out of the FA Cup at Anfield.

After Roberto Firmino brilliantly opened the scoring, Jay Rodriguez twice capitalised on woeful Liverpool defending to turn the tie around.

Joel Matip’s own goal on the stroke of half-time saw the Reds fall further behind, and Mohamed Salah’s late strike was not enough to inspire a comeback.

Mignolet 5⃣
Can 4⃣
Wijnaldum

Player Ratings from Liverpool 2-3 West Brom by @Aidan_Semple https://t.co/85wPYhJ77W

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It completes a wretched week for Liverpool, who were beaten at bottom-of-the-table Swansea on Monday night.

Speaking to the media after the game, Klopp refused to offer any excuses, slamming his side’s costly defensive errors.

“Around the goals we were poor,” he said. “Just bad defending. In decisive moments, we were poor. For the 2nd goal, Rodriguez is alone in the box, which makes no sense. 

“For the 3rd goal, that’s unbelievable – really easy to defend, you only have to push out and he’s offside.”

“West Brom deserved it. I don’t like saying it, but it’s the truth. We tried in the 2nd half, we changed the system 3 or 4 times today. We pushed, but they defended hard. They deserved it.”

LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – Sunday, January 14, 2018: Liverpool’s manager Jürgen Klopp reacts during the FA Premier League match between Liverpool and Manchester City at Anfield. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

Amid speculation surrounding his future, Daniel Sturridge was a notable omission from the squad, leaving Liverpool’s bench bereft of potential impact players.

Klopp, though, insists his absence does not indicate an imminent move.

“We could only take 18,” he explained. “He wasn’t left out because of any enquiries if there have been any.”

The German was also asked about his thoughts on the VAR system, through which a West Brom goal was disallowed and a Liverpool penalty awarded, albeit after lengthy delays.

READ MORE: Five Talking Points from Liverpool 2-3 West Brom

LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – Sunday, January 14, 2018: Referee Craig Pawson awards Liverpool a penalty after reviewing a video replay during the FA Premier League match between Liverpool and Manchester City at Anfield. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

Asked if the deliberations interrupted the flow of the game, he replied: “Which flow? I think it’s important that we all wanted, if a goal should be disallowed, it’s disallowed. After the game we often talk about these decisions.

“It’s normal that in the game it takes a little longer. That will, I think, become a little bit smoother in the future.”

Barring an extraordinary Champions League triumph, Liverpool face another season without silverware after their third consecutive fourth-round exit.

“We had big aims in this competition, and we wanted to show it,” Klopp said.

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Source: anfieldhq.com