Klopp accepts need to rotate amid hectic schedule

Jurgen Klopp admits he will have to chop and change his line-ups as Liverpool look to cope with the demands of three different competitions in the coming weeks.

The Reds face potential Premier League title rivals Tottenham, Chelsea and Manchester City, along with Southampton, in the next three weeks.

Alongside that, they take on PSG and Napoli in their opening Champions League group games and meet Chelsea in the League Cup.

Klopp has only made one change to his first XI so far, bringing in Jordan Henderson for Naby Keita last time out at Leicester, but levels of rotation are about to significantly increase.

“Of course, we have to [rotate],” he said in his pre-match press conference. “We will see exactly how we can do it.

“It is a big misunderstanding that we will plan for the game tomorrow and [also] think about the game after and the game after. That’s too complicated; you have to go into the next game and see who you can choose. That’s it – you always try to have your best team.

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LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – AUGUST 12: Daniel Sturridge of Liverpool celebrates after scoring in the Premier League match between Liverpool and West Ham at Anfield on August 12, 2018 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Getty Images)

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“It is clear, with numbers [from] games and all that stuff – we get so much information after a game, which you [the media] don’t have – you see how players react in different situations. We have to do that, we have to rotate.

Klopp is confident that, with fitness levels rising after a disrupted pre-season, his squad will not suffer from the gruelling schedule.

“The first three games were the same line-up and then we changed one position,” he said. “It is [important] to gain the points, have a good start, to create the basis and all that stuff.

“We used the players who had the longest pre-season pretty much; apart from Bobby, who came pretty late, they all had at least three weeks. The two up front, plus Bobby, and then all the others had a normal break pretty much.

LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – AUGUST 12: Roberto Firmino of Liverpool is substituted for Jordan Henderson of Liverpool during the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and West Ham United at Anfield on August 12, 2018 in Liverpool, United Kingdom. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)

“That’s good, they had a normal break and then started pre-season with us, so they were the most stable players in the squad and that’s why we used them.

“After four weeks, when the fitness levels looked quite OK – it got better and better for one player or another – then we had to send them away [on international duty].

“Now they have come back – the last ones came back yesterday – and today we train, then we make a line-up for tomorrow. Mauricio Pochettino has the same issue to get ready for the game tomorrow, that’s how it is. We all have to make constantly the best of what we’ve got.”

Daniel Sturridge, who promoted himself to second in the strikers’ pecking order by performing brilliantly in pre-season, and versatile £13million signing Xherdan Shaqiri may be among the chief beneficiaries of this rotation policy.

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Source: anfieldhq.com