Klopp says fringe Liverpool players need to be ready for festive fixture list

Jurgen Klopp says Liverpool’s fringe players need to be ready to step up during the crunch festive fixture list to help the Reds make it into the New Year with their Premier League title challenge intact.

Watford play host to the Anfield outfit later today and while it’s likely that the German will field his strongest possible team, with the fixtures about to start stacking up, Klopp will need to make full use of his squad to avoid injury and fatigue.

Before New Year’s Day, Liverpool have 10 games in all competitions. With a stronger squad than recent seasons, the Reds are expected to emerge unscathed provided a major injury crisis can be avoided.

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Sadio Mane of Liverpool (L) laughs with Andreas Kornmayer, Head of Fitness and Conditioning during a Liverpool training session at Melwood Training Ground on September 17, 2018 in Liverpool, England.

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“Of course we had a good start but we knew always it was only the start,” Klopp said.

“It’s good, absolutely. If we come through that period similar to how we started then it could be a really good season We don’t know that in the moment but we have to try.

“We have to use the squad. It’s quite difficult to change around the end of December and January. You never want to make eight or nine changes because of rhythm, tuning, other important stuff as well.

“If you play Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday that is difficult but now we play Saturday, Wednesday (PSG away), Sunday (Everton home) so that is still okay with recovery.

“It is then about having different options for different opponents. It’s good to have different players to close different spaces, hopefully it stays like this.”

“Form can drop, there could be injuries – you have to be ready,” he said.

“They choose that situation as well. They have the benefit of training and all the things we offer here. If you don’t play, you still have to improve. It’s about the player.

“In the moment when it’s clicking like crazy in training, I’m not blind, I’m watching. The only problem is that we don’t train that often. We recover most of the time. It’s a bit of a tricky situation but everything will be fine.

“We’re only talking now about half a year or a year of their careers, nobody remembers that.”

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Source: anfieldhq.com