(Football news) Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has said that his team need to “go back to basics” and improve their defending if they are to salvage their Premier League season. The Reds are currently ninth in the Premier League with just two wins in the last seven games and have conceded 14 goals in nine games across all competitions, keeping just two clean sheets. The Reds recently drew 3-3 against Brighton, leaving them 11 points behind league leaders Arsenal and 10 points behind reigning champions Manchester City.

Speaking about his team’s struggles, Klopp said “When you spot a problem and think you have the solution, you expect [it] to be instant. That's never the case in football. We've conceded similar goals now, they have gone through the same gaps. When the timing in our defending isn't perfect we're too open. So yes, we have to be more compact.Defending is an art and it worked for us really well for a long time. But with it not working, you realise you have to go back to the basics. We can't always start anew. If we can help the boys with ways to defend differently, we have to do that." 

The German manager continued by saying “People can ask how could it happen that these players are not full of confidence? Do you think [Manchester United forward] Cristiano Ronaldo at this moment is at the top of his confidence levels? He was for ages the best player in the world and now it is not going his way and it is not exactly the same. That happens to all of us. Lionel Messi played last season [his first at Paris St-Germain] where it was not exactly the same because these kinds of things are really important to all of us and you have to work for it. You have to take the little things to take a step in the right direction and be really ready for the moment when it is back and that is what we are doing." 

Liverpool were unbeaten at this stage last season, winning four and drawing three out of their seven games. While the early season form was attributed to the integration of new signings and the departure of Sadio Mane, what has become clear is that Liverpool’s defensive tactics are leaving them too exposed for counter attacks. The Reds have developed a habit of conceding first, looking lethargic and lacking the intensity through the game, traits that don’t match up with the style Klopp has successfully managed to implement at the club so far. 

Such have been Liverpool’s problems that even Jurgen Klopp does not have an immediate solution to their woes. In the post match interview after Brighton, the German manager said “We have to keep working. It is a moment we have to keep going through together. I cannot say what everyone wants to hear. It is just reality." The Reds will face Rangers in their next match on Tuesday in the Champions League and will then take on league leaders Arsenal on Sunday, 9 October. A defeat at the Emirates Stadium will leave Liverpool 14 points behind the Gunners, a tally which will cause a serious dent in their title aspirations.

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