Klopp on Carragher’s Van Dijk comments: ‘I’m sure Jamie needs to lose a little bit of weight, not Virgil!’

Jürgen Klopp rushed to the defence of his new record signing when he addressed the media ahead of Liverpool’s crucial Premier League clash with Spurs at Anfield on Sunday.

Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp responded to criticism from former Reds defender Jamie Carragher about record signing Virgil van Dijk at press conference on Friday.

LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – Sunday, January 14, 2018: Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk looks dejected after missing a chance during the FA Premier League match between Liverpool and Manchester City at Anfield. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

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Van Dijk, who moved to Anfield from Southampton for a record £75m in January, was left out of the starting line-up in Liverpool’ 3-0 win at Huddersfield on Tuesday night.

This raised a few eyebrows, including those of Liverpool legend Carragher’s and Klopp responded with a witty comment of his own when asked about the comments made about his defender.

He said: “I’m sure Jamie [Carragher] needs to lose a little bit of weight but I know for Virgil it’s not the case! He was left out of the side purely for a physical reason.”

“He hasn’t played a full season, and still needs to build up his fitness. When Virgil came here he was not match-fit. I don’t know him long enough to say ‘yes, you can play every three days’ at this moment.”

“We need to use the time between the matches. I spoke to him about it, he expected it. We have to use the time.”

LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – Friday, January 5, 2018: Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk celebrates scoring the winning goal at the Kop end to seal a 2-1 victory over Everton on his debut during the FA Cup 3rd Round match between Liverpool FC and Everton FC, the 230th Merseyside Derby, at Anfield. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

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Van Dijk wrote himself into Liverpool folklore when he scored the winner against Everton in the FA Cup on what turned out to be a dream debut for the Dutch defender, and Klopp is satisfied with him, and warned others that the best is yet to come.

“I am very happy with Virgil’s progress,” he added. “We will all see him at his best after the summer, but he can bring a lot of things already. A few ups and downs.”

“We will see his best after the summer. He has to get used to this style of play. Everton, outstanding, Swansea, good, West Brom, bad game for whole team.”

LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – Sunday, December 10, 2017: Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho Correia walks off dejected as the game finishes 1-1 during the FA Premier League match between Liverpool and Everton, the 229th Merseyside Derby, at Anfield. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

This was the first time that Klopp has addressed the media since the January transfer window came to an end on Wednesday evening.

There was a flurry of transfer activity throughout the window, especially on the final day, where several U23s left the club either on-loan or on a permanent basis.

The Liverpool boss was naturally disappointed to lose midfielder Phillipe Coutinho, but Klopp defended the timing of the record £146m transfer and the way he handled the situation.

He said: “We did what we thought was right. Would I have preferred to keep Philippe Coutinho? Of course but I thought it was sensible to do it.”

“The players who went on loan made sense. Lazar didn’t play for a long time, same with Flanno. Daniel wanted to leave. We have Roberto, Danny, Dom and Mo.”

HUDDERSFIELD, ENGLAND – Tuesday, January 30, 2018: Liverpool’s manager Jürgen Klopp embraces captain Jordan Henderson as he is substituted during the FA Premier League match between Huddersfield Town FC and Liverpool FC at the John Smith’s Stadium. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

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One player who remained at the club, and is in the long-term plans of his manager is the Reds captain Jordan Henderson, who starred in the midweek victory over Huddersfield.

The former Sunderland man has been a constant in the Reds’ midfield, also going on to captain his country, so Klopp is baffled with the unnecessary criticism towards his captain.

“I don’t get this,” Klopp stated. “I don’t know why or even if people are not happy. He is a fantastic player and he didn’t prove to me at Huddersfield as I knew already.”

“Hopefully he stays fit for the rest of the season – important for Liverpool and England.”

HUDDERSFIELD, ENGLAND – Tuesday, January 30, 2018: Liverpool’s Sadio Mane looks dejected after missing a chance during the FA Premier League match between Huddersfield Town FC and Liverpool FC at the John Smith’s Stadium. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

The Liverpool manager also rushed to the defence of his winger Sadio Mané, who didn’t perform to his best in the victory at the John Smith’s Stadium.

The Senegalese international has come under fire for failing to emulate the performances of last season, which saw him scored 13 goals and register eight assists in 29 games.

Despite this, Mané still has two goals and two assists in his last five Premier League games, and Klopp believes that the £35m man is still capable of swinging a game in favour of his side.

“I don’t think about it but even when he’s not at his best he is still a threat to other teams. You have to go through and build on the good things. Sadio on average day is still a fantastic player,” he said.

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Source: anfieldhq.com