LONDON: Liverpool must show their hunger to get their season back on track after a bruising period saw them lose their Premier League lead and exit the Europa League, manager Juergen Klopp said ahead of Sunday’s trip to Fulham.
The Merseysiders ended a three-game winless run in all competitions with a 1-0 victory over Atalanta on Thursday but it was not enough to keep them in the Europa League after a 3-0 thrashing in their quarter-final first leg at Anfield.
That result was sandwiched between a 2-2 Premier League draw at Manchester United and a shock 1-0 defeat at home against Crystal Palace that left them two points behind Manchester City in the title race.
“We have to make sure we become that opponent for each team again (that) they don’t want to play against. We made it a bit too easy for three teams in a row and we should change that,” Klopp told reporters.
“I’m absolutely positive after a day off and processing the things properly. I’m more than happy with the situation we are in,” he added when asked if his side could bounce back after their exit from Europe. Fulham, who have had their share of ups and downs in the season, are 12th in the standings. Klopp said his side have to show their desire to win at Craven Cottage on Sunday.
“They (Fulham) are probably in a more solid period again and if you cannot fight for Europe then you should not be in a relegation battle,” Klopp added. “They can more or less be calm, be themselves and we have to see. It’s always like this on a day like this, we have to show that we want it more than them, even when it’s at their place.”
With six games remaining, third-placed Liverpool are still in the title race despite recent setbacks, level with Arsenal on 71 points while leaders Manchester City have 73. “I think if we would win all our games, yeah, there’s a good chance that we will be champion. If not, yeah, then it’s a good chance that somebody is there,” Klopp told reporters when asked about the run-in.
“Now we all sit here and think, ‘OK, (Manchester) City will win all their games.’ Yeah, that’s happened quite frequently, but they have a lot of games to play, difficult opponents as well, stuff like this.”