Liverpool analysis – Jurgen Klopp answers a question of respect but no excuse for Manchester United

Respecting the Cup

Jurgen Klopp himself admitted it: this was a dead end situation for Liverpool.

Before the game, the Reds coach accepted that there was no result that reflected well on their team of Premier League winners as they prepared to face 11 children who were left at Villa Park by their parents earlier that day.

“I’m not sure what the scenario is [is where] They say it’s brilliant for Liverpool, but we just went out there and played, “Klopp said.

He was right, of course.

There was hardly a course of action imaginable in which players like Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Jordan Henderson emerged from a game against a group of teenage rookies with their reputations enhanced.

Not many in surprisingly strong Liverpool needed that here at Villa Park. It was simply a night of professionalism for those involved. The rest would take care of themselves.

But if the strength of the visiting team caught some off guard, it was difficult to assess exactly why Klopp had opted for so many of his big guns.

Was it simply an attempt to give your stuttering team a boost knowing that they won’t play again until January 17?

Or was it a more long-term indicator of how seriously they are taking the FA Cup this season?

Perhaps the answer is somewhere in the middle.

It has been 15 years since Steven Gerrard and his teammates last won this competition for Liverpool and have lifted virtually every other trophy since that famous day in Cardiff in May 2006.

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The oldest club competition in the world has continued to elude them during that time, even if the annual outings have not always been greeted with widespread outrage.

Klopp is just a national double away from a practically clean sweep of major trophies as Liverpool’s manager and while the League Cup will have to wait another year, why shouldn’t the German keep his eyes on his more glamorous cousin in 2021?

The FA Cup will undoubtedly and unashamedly remain at the bottom of the priority ladder at Anfield this season, but given the team that Klopp has managed to assemble, perhaps a braver attempt than previous years could now come.

Wijnaldum as vital as ever

Gini Wijnaldum celebrations were minimal.

Perhaps it was because the prevailing emotion was one of relief after their soft finish had put it 2-1 against a Liverpool side desperate to avoid further discomfort at Villa Park.

Maybe it was because he knew that he and his teammates shouldn’t have been biding their time to take a decisive lead against Villa’s rookie team.

Or it is possible that Wijnaldum was concerned about how the optics of a wild commemoration will have appeared against a team without a professional appearance between them before the start.

Whatever the reason, the Dutchman made sure to stand up when it came time to be counted.

Wijnaldum’s goals are as important as they are rare, and in a perverse way, this one of giving Liverpool the advantage was as vital as any of them in recent years.

It was enough to bust Villa’s defensive dam and in five minutes, he was 4-1 and game over.

Most eyes will have been on substitute Thiago Alcantara’s contributions to midfield, but Wijnaldum and his multi-talented roles once again proved invaluable.

The record may be broken at this stage for Klopp, but he can’t afford to lose such a vital member of his team this summer.

It will be especially irritating to see him leave as a free agent.

The cost of replacing him will only be exorbitant at a time when funds are so squeezed that the club is forced to risk leaving the central vacuum unfilled.

Whatever the obstacles to a new Wijnaldum deal at Anfield, Klopp must do everything he can to get them out of the way.

All eyes on 17

So to Anfield, where Liverpool will be waiting for a Manchester United that can still arrive as leaders of the Premier League next Sunday.

If Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side avoids defeat at Burnley on Tuesday, they will pitch in Merseyside at the pinnacle of English football, in possession of a place Liverpool will feel as their own.

The fact that he may still be United’s own is a testament to how much momentum has been lost in the last three league games.

On the other hand, the fact that Liverpool can still entertain their great rivals as division leaders says it all about how well Klopp and his players handled an injury-ravaged and match-filled autumn.

Klopp will leave Villa Park satisfied with his night job, but the return trip to Merseyside is likely to be dominated by thoughts of January 17.

And perhaps a crucial element is a very welcome and little-seen break before that crucial game.

Klopp has barely been able to breathe for most of the season, but now he has more than a week to prepare his charges for the biggest game of the season.

Enough time for your players to enter the training field detailing the small details that could make a difference.

“We have a lot of players without rhythm, but we will give it to a lot of players with 11v11 sessions,” Klopp said after the game.

The Liverpool manager hasn’t had many opportunities to fully prepare this season, but he will have no such mitigation for United’s impending visit.