Klopp Accepts Blame For Napoli Defeat

By Joshua Walters

Jurgen Klopp has assumed partial responsibility for Liverpool’s 1-0 defeat at Napoli on Wednesday and asked for more time to examine the full wrongs committed on the night.

Lorenzo Insigne stretched to get on to Jose Callejon’s 90th-minute in-swinger into the penalty box, to hand Napoli victory over the English side in the second game of this season’s Champions League.

Liverpool beat PSG at Anfield on match day-one, but could not continue the run against Carlo Ancelotti's men at the Stadio San Paolo on an error-prone evening, and Klopp thinks he is to blame for that.

“The start of the game was OK,” claims Klopp. “Then, the timing for our defensive movements were not good enough, we didn’t close the spaces in the right moment, we didn’t react in the right situation and so they could play through our formation.”

“Things like this happen but not as often as they did tonight and it costs energy. We had to fight really hard. Then when you have the ball you have to play much calmer.”

“I have to accept that a big part of that performance was my fault for sure but I need at least one night to watch it again and see exactly what was the fault, but it was not like it should have looked.”

Liverpool have a Premier League top-of-the-table fixture with Manchester City on Sunday, and Klopp has told his charges and the supporters to react positively.
“Let’s have a look at how the players are after the game and then we will prepare. Then we have our crowd at our backs. Tonight you could see Napoli used the atmosphere and we couldn’t calm it down but on Sunday it will be 100% different.”