KEYS CLAIMS KLOPP HAS ‘KILLED LIVERPOOL’ BY MAKING ‘ILL-JUDGED’ ERROR DURING FAREWELL SEASON
Richard Keys has accused Jurgen Klopp of “killing” Liverpool as his “ill-judged” error has contributed to their downfall during the run-in.
Klopp announced in January that he would be leaving Liverpool at the end of this season.
The respected German manager is under contract until 2026 but he has decided to leave this summer as he has run out of steam and needs a sabbatical.
Liverpool supporters have been spoiled during Klopp’s reign at Anfield but last season was a rare disappointing campaign for the club as they finished fifth in the Premier League.
Klopp oversaw a rebuild last summer as FSG spent over £200m to sign Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Ryan Gravenberch and Wataru Endo.
Before this season, Liverpool would have hoped to qualify for the Champions League and perhaps win a trophy, but they have surpassed expectations during Klopp’s farewell campaign.
Liverpool have already won the Carabao Cup and they have mounted a serious challenge for the Premier League title as they have battled on four fronts.
The Reds have endured a rough couple of weeks, though. They were knocked out of the FA Cup by Manchester United, while they lost 3-1 on aggregate against Atalanta as they exited the Europa League at the quarter-final stage.
In the Premier League, Liverpool dropped down to third last weekend as they suffered a disappointing 1-0 defeat to Crystal Palace at Anfield.
“Killed Liverpool…”
Responding to Liverpool’s Europa League exit and Aston Villa’s progression in the Europa Conference League, Keys claimed Klopp announcing his exit in advance has “killed” his squad.
Keys tweeted: “It’s such a shame that our clubs have done so badly this past week but congrats to @AVFCOfficial.
“Let’s hope they go on & win it now. Emery has done a fantastic job. Sadly it’s beginning to look as though Klopp’s ill-judged announcement has killed Liverpool not lifted them.”
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Sporting Lisbon boss Ruben Amorim has emerged as the new favourite to replace Klopp after Xabi Alonso announced that he will be sticking with Bayer Leverkusen for at least one more season.
Former Arsenal and Chelsea star Cesc Fabregas has lauded Alonso, who has been doing an “incredible” job at Leverkusen.
“I’m not surprised [by Alonso’s success] in a way because he’s a very smart, intelligent guy, very thoughtful. I could feel as a player he was a protector but a protector with a lot of quality,” Fabregas said during his appearance on BBC’s Planet Premier League podcast.
“He was playing as a six but he could always contribute in the attacking point of view, in every phase of the game. You could see that he was one or two steps ahead. So in that case it doesn’t surprise me.
“But also it should be said that I didn’t expect such an impact in 20, 21 months. They were bottom of the league with five points if I’m not mistaken. He already took the team very far in the conference cup last year and this year he can win the treble.
“It’s incredible and it shows when you’re smart and you know exactly what you’re doing that things can work out very, very well.”
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