Eye-catching away wins have helped define Liverpool as a team that excels on its travels but has yet to click at Anfield under Jürgen Klopp. That black-and-white narrative was destroyed, fittingly enough, at Newcastle United. It is not where Liverpool play that dictates their performance level but who plays, and a fitful contribution from Christian Benteke cast doubt on his suitability to Klopp’s system at St James’ Park.
Liverpool stalled collectively to hand Steve McClaren a precious win as Newcastle manager and leave Klopp lamenting arguably the worst display of his reign.
Asked what went wrong, the Liverpool manager said: “Everything”, and vowed to learn from a defeat that was “deserved and it hurts”. The stark contrast in the intensity and style of his team when Benteke does and does not start must feature in Klopp’s review. The penetrating, imposing side that blew Southampton away in the Capital One Cup quarter-final was absent on Tyneside and, with Daniel Sturridge starting on the bench, Liverpool’s problems began at the front. Benteke offered Liverpool something different when he arrived from Aston Villa in the summer. At Newcastle the difference was a deterioration.
Those who travelled this season in support of Liverpool to Stamford Bridge, the Etihad Stadium and St Mary’s were treated to performances of rare precision, yielding 13 goals, and so it was surprising to witness the visitors perform with so little menace at St James’. The first half was Southampton in reverse as a bright start, mainly instigated by Jordon Ibe and Nathaniel Clyne down the right wing, petered out into a flat, blunt display. As in the contrast between Liverpool’s performances against Manchester City and in the Europa League win over Bordeaux five days later, the fluency in their play plus the pace and movement in attack dropped considerably with Benteke leading the line.
There were mitigating circumstances here. Philippe Coutinho’s continued absence with a hamstring problem, Emre Can’s one-match suspension and the need to manage Sturridge’s return from injury impacted on Klopp’s creative options. It was also a reflection of Adam Lallana’s form since the German coach arrived at Anfield that his absence, after a relentless contribution against his former club in the 6-1 Capital One Cup quarter final win, was felt so acutely. Roberto Firmino was deployed alongside Benteke and was unable to fill Lallana’s void in terms of vision, touch and passing accuracy. It was the relatively static Benteke who caused the greatest disruption to Liverpool’s pattern, however, as their hopes of an eighth win in nine matches vanished.
The £32.5m signing has produced some impressive, clinical touches in front of goal since his arrival. Klopp has also appealed for the striker to be given time to adapt at Anfield, claiming Robert Lewandowski would not have developed into one of the world’s finest finishers if treated with the impatience prevalent in the Premier League. It is a reasonable request but Benteke has yet to deliver an overall performance that suggests his style is suited to what the Liverpool manager demands from this team. The penetrating sprints and running that have underpinned Liverpool’s impressive start under Klopp were notable by their absence from the towering forward in the 62 minutes he was on the pitch. Intense pressing is also vital under Klopp and Benteke fell short in that department too.
Newcastle’s full-backs, Daryl Janmaat and Paul Dummett, were able to enjoy comfortable afternoons with Liverpool’s forward line failing to close them down quickly. “There was no rhythm from our side,” lamented Klopp. “Our defending in the last line was good but our midfield didn’t defend well, our midfield pressing wasn’t good and I couldn’t see any offensive pressing.”
Benteke had the visitors’ best chance of a dull first half but shot high over Rob Elliot’s goal from close range when Alberto Moreno’s corner dropped at his feet. Newcastle’s stand-in goalkeeper was rarely troubled, a routine save from Dejan Lovren’s late header apart, although Moreno had a fine goal wrongly disallowed for offside at 1-0. “We made a world-class goal,” said Klopp, “but because we weren’t good enough today the linesman probably thought: ‘You don’t make world-class goals if you play this shit.’”
With Sturridge fit and sharp or Coutinho at his creative best Liverpool possess a threat that worries opponents regardless of how well the team performs, but not with Benteke leading the line in their absence. Only once did the animated McClaren have his head in his hands when Liverpool attacked and that reaction was prompted by Sturridge’s first run at Newcastle’s central defenders. Klopp had seen enough of Benteke’s and Firmino’s contributions to replace them with the England duo of Sturridge and Lallana just after the hour. Asked if they were replaced due to the lack of offensive pressing, he replied: “No. It was because I wanted to bring a striker on and we didn’t want to play with four strikers.”
Liverpool improved after the double substitution but remained way below the standards Klopp expects. “I didn’t say we were title contenders before, so why should I explain now why we are not?” said the manager. There was no dispute.
