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Diogo Jota is only the second player to score in his first two Champions League starts with Liverpool, after Robbie Keane in 2008.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said “good performances never give me a headache” when Diogo Jota insisted on his claims for a starting spot with a Champions League hat-trick in Atalanta.
Jota, 23, was selected ahead of Roberto Firmino and brought his tally to seven goals in 10 games for the Reds to win 5-0.
Klopp said: “It is important that we have more than 11 [to choose from] and tonight Diogo played a super game. “
Liverpool Champions face Manchester City in the Premier League on Sunday.
The Reds are leaders of the Premier League, while Pep Guardiola’s are in tenth position, five points behind their rivals but having played one game less.
Klopp added: “For tonight, that was the decision, it was clear that it made sense for tonight to use Diogo’s good form in the first place.
“And because of the way Atalanta plays and defends, it makes sense that Diogo’s skills help.”
Jota joined for £ 41 million from the Wolves and said he was “playing for the best team of my career so far”.
He told BT Sport: “I don’t know if this is the best moment of my career, but obviously scoring goals is my way of playing football. I’m happy with this, a great away win in the Champions League, a good moment and a Goodnight.”
When asked what they can take in Sunday’s game against City, Jota said: “Well, five goals, that doesn’t happen that often to score five in a game. Clean sheets too: if we can keep the goal clear. Zero against City, will win the game. “
Jota presses Firmino
A quick look at the numbers shows just how impressive Jota’s start at Liverpool has been:
- Only Mohamed Salah (nine) has scored more goals than Jota (seven) for Liverpool this season. Jota is just the second player to score in his first two Champions League starts for Liverpool, after Robbie Keane in 2008, and became the 10th player to score a hat-trick for Liverpool in the Cup. of Europe / Champions League.
Having been heavily used as a substitute thus far, Jota got off to a start against Atalanta, with Brazilian international Firmino having scored just one goal in 10 games this season.
“Good performances never give me a headache,” Klopp said. “But the world is sometimes a really bad place where the moment someone is shining, we immediately talk about another player who played for us, it feels like 500 games in a row.
“We would not even be in the Champions League if Firmino was not with us. However, I immediately have to explain why he is not in the team.”
“He will be in the team and for many people in the world, if you ask them: ‘What makes Liverpool special some days?’ I’d say the way Bobby Firmino is playing, because on a good day it’s not [possible] defend [against]. “
Analysis – ‘A perfect night’
Former Reds defender Stephen Warnock said Jota is “hot” right now and that with Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane almost certainly starting Sunday’s Premier League game at Manchester City, it would be “very, very hard to leave it out. “
He told BBC Radio 5 Live: “Change the style of play. You see the pace that Jota has. Jota brings more frankness, while Firmino is smarter. Fans have criticized him for slowing down attacks too much.
“They improve when Jota comes into the team right now. He’s been awesome, they’ve called him a pressing monster.”
“He shows his confidence. He has seen this as a once in a lifetime opportunity. He believes that he can take Liverpool to the next level and he also has the confidence of the players around him. Firmino will play at the weekend, but option and a strong option. .
“Jota is hot right now. It is very, very difficult to leave him out against Manchester City. It seems inevitable that it will be his three forwards, but you never know with Jurgen Klopp.”
Former Reds forward Peter Crouch said it was a “perfect night” for Liverpool, while former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand said on BT Sport that the Reds “are the team to beat.”
Salah reaches the top
Meanwhile, Egyptian striker Salah brought his Liverpool goal record to a remarkable 103 goals in 164 games since arriving from Roma in 2017.
His second-half goal was also the 21st in the Champions League for the Reds, tying with former captain Steven Gerrard for Liverpool’s top scorer in the competition.
Klopp added: “I don’t think anyone could have defended themselves against Sadio Mane, Mo Salah and Diogo Jota, so it wasn’t about tactics or our system, it was about the team.”
Source: bbc.com
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