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Gary Neville has questioned Jurgen Klopp’s complaints about fatigue and start times, claiming it’s about getting a psychological advantage, like Sir Alex Ferguson.
Klopp was involved in a heated exchange with BT Sport following his team’s 1-1 draw at Brighton in the Premier League on Saturday lunchtime, in which James Milner was injured by the Reds.
The Liverpool manager has repeatedly spoken out against Saturday’s busy schedule and lunchtime start time.
However, Neville, speaking in Monday night football – feels like Klopp is implementing the same psychological tactics his former boss Ferguson used regularly during his 27-year reign as Manchester United. For Neville, Klopp’s pointed comments after the game are just one way to get a little extra edge over his rivals.
He said: “I don’t think Jurgen Klopp has a point around fatigue, during preseason or in games on Saturday.
“My take is that when you become a winning coach, and this is where Sir Alex came in and why he was called a so-and-so complainer for many years, the best coaches just want to win.
“The biggest risk for Klopp to win the league again this season is another big injury or two. So he wants to try to get that advantage to put something psychological on people’s minds. Sir Alex Ferguson did it for 15 or 16. years.
“Klopp has been the best coach in interviews for the last few years, he has been the best coach on the field, he is connected with the fans better than anyone, his football style is fantastic, but on Saturday he ended up in an interview, and that is very weird. He didn’t get his story right, he has no evidence to back it up in either the games played or the slot machines on Saturday. He just lost this one after being brilliant in all his other interviews he has done.
“He’s trying to get a head start to get results, that’s all.
“I played for a coach at Sir Alex Ferguson, and there are hundreds of these quotes (see below).
“Every season I wanted that advantage. I wanted the ability to bounce back more, to play at different times, so it suited Manchester United, and that’s what Klopp wants now.
“What Klopp has done at Liverpool in the last three years is unbelievable, but his team this season is being weakened a bit by the fact that they have had those three years.
“There may be an element of Covid and sports science, but the timeout has been there. The games are not thicker or faster than any other season. Saturday’s starts are not thicker or faster than any other season. , so the one-off points that Klopp is making haven’t happened. “
As you referenced, Neville is not buying the argument that we are in a season of exceptional circumstances due to the condensed nature of the match list. He was present with a statistical analysis to show how the 12.30pm start time doesn’t affect a team’s ability to score points too much and how this season’s schedule may not be as demanding as many people automatically think.
“I don’t think it’s an exceptional season,” Neville said.
“It is exceptional that the players have rested more than ever.
4:20
Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville debate whether the Premier League should follow the EFL and allow five substitutions per game instead of three.
“They had three months off from March to June, then they played nine games, where Klopp played all of his best players even when they had won the league, and then they had five weeks off until the Community Shield.
“In any season that I played in a World Cup or a European Championship, I only had three or four weeks anyway. This year there is more rest than in any other year in football history. I have no idea that be a unique season The fans are not in the stadiums, the feeling is not for the players.
“I have reviewed the history of the 12pm games around 2002 when this game turned into something like the Premier League decided they were going to try to attack the Asian market. It has been a huge success for the Premier League, and the The wealth of the Premier League is due to this ability to play games at 12pm on Saturday and early on Sunday.
“That’s almost a third of the season they played in 2002/03, a season that I played in, we were playing at 11am, 11:30 am, 12pm, we played so many games in that slot. Liverpool itself in 2006/07, Tottenham, Arsenal, this is not a new problem.
“What Klopp is talking about is an 18-year problem. Liverpool this season have played two games in that space, the maximum they can play this season is six. That’s the maximum number of times you can be in that space. .
“I don’t think Klopp has what I think is a major complaint about being at a disadvantage against other teams playing in that position in any other season. If you are successful and you’re Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea, they want to see you in Asia And foreign broadcasters will pay for that, it’s been the same for 18 years.
“So I started thinking about the volume of games Liverpool have played, and thinking that they have played a lot of games in recent years, they have been successful in the Champions League, they have gone all the way with City in the league. Yes You look at the days per game, again through history, at this point they are played every 5.4 days.
“If you look again at the most successful teams that have had European campaigns, be it the Europe or the Champions League, since Manchester United in 1998/99, again Liverpool are not at a disadvantage. The players Liverpool have this season , with larger squads, they are asked to play one match every 5.4 days.
“The most Liverpool can play this season, if they go all the way in every competition, is every 4.5 days.”
Carra strikes back: Klopp is being sincere
Jamie Carragher disagreed with Neville on whether this season could be considered extraordinary.
“As a season, you can’t deny that it’s no different,” Carragher said.
“How can you say it’s a normal season? You have Covid everywhere. You talk about the players being out for three months, but no one knew when the season was going to start. The players weren’t out, they were in training.
“Let’s not forget, this discussion started with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after playing in Istanbul on a Wednesday and playing for Everton on Saturday lunchtime. He came out and said, ‘I think the authority wants us to fail.’
“I looked at it and thought, no, I don’t agree. We’re on TV and we understand slots and where people have to go. I’m the same with Jurgen and the 12.30 kick-off. Everybody wants Liverpool and Manchester. United on the go.
“Jurgen Klopp defended Solskjaer. You’re talking as if Liverpool don’t have an excuse or reason or they shouldn’t complain about this. I think the Liverpool manager is sincere in not just thinking about Liverpool. I really do.”
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