Jurgen Klopp denies selection 'mistake' - but Liverpool team shows FA Cup in need of reform
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Updated 08/01/2017 at 19:25 GMT
In-depth: Liverpool’s decision to play their youngest ever team has been defended by Jurgen Klopp after they could only draw 0-0 at home to Plymouth – but was the decision right? And does it say something significant about a competition in need of reform?
Liverpool's German manager Jurgen Klopp (C) congratulates Plymouth's English defender Ben Purrington
Image credit: AFP
Klopp was adamant his decision to field the youngest team in Liverpool’s history was not a “mistake” as they ran into an obdurate and resilient League Two side, who allowed the home side to pile up 77% of possession but have only four shots in a match which by Klopp’s own account was “boring”.
Roberto Firmino, Adam Lallana and Daniel Sturridge were all on by the end, but exposing so many young players to the intensity of first-team football did not pay off for Liverpool, who must now negotiate an awkward, midweek away trip to Devon in an already packed January schedule.
But Klopp’s decision to rotate was hardly unique. All across the third-round weekend, Premier League sides offered up second-string teams. Some, like Bournemouth, were punished, others, like Arsenal, just got away with it, and still others, like Manchester United, thrived.
What did Klopp say about his controversial team selection?
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Plymouth's English midfielder Oscar Threlkeld (L) vies with Liverpool's Welsh striker Ben Woodburn
Image credit: AFP
Regarding the fact that it was Liverpool’s youngest ever starting XI, Klopp said:
Was it? With Lucas in?! We didn’t think a second about it, honestly. We made the line-up because the boys deserved it and it looks in training like that. At the end, it was that line-up, and all the boys deserved it. We didn’t think a second about the age, they are important players in our squad and that’s why we used them.
In his post-match press conference, Klopp added:
I don’t think the line-up was a mistake, but you can see it like this if you want. We made mistakes in the game and always with the boys, the good things they are responsible for and the bad things I am responsible for. If you want to see it [the result] in a bad way then I am 100 per cent responsible, I have no problem with that. I will take it even if they had scored a goal in the last minute. It’s really important for us, having games like this where we really have to fight for the result with a different line-up. There is a long season still to go and we need to change. If you make that many changes, it doesn’t make it easier for the boys – I know this – but they need this experience and now they have it so we can go on.
Why Klopp got it wrong
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Substitute Liverpool's English striker Daniel Sturridge warms up
Image credit: AFP
Plymouth were almost completely absent in the first half and the amount of possession Liverpool enjoyed may have suggested that Klopp’s team were more than capable of getting the required result against a team from League Two.
But in truth, Plymouth’s strategy was to allow Liverpool to have the ball and a dearth of ideas in the final third from Liverpool’s young XI was ultimately responsible for the result. Klopp could have added a bit more experience to aid the young players he was exposing to the full glare of cup football.
It was a team selection which clearly backfired, not least because Liverpool now face an incredibly busy month:
- January 11: Southampton in the League Cup
- January 15: Manchester United in the Premier League
- January 17/18: Plymouth in the FA Cup
- January 21: Swansea in the Premier League
- January 25: Southampton in the League Cup
- January 31: Chelsea in the Premier League
Did Klopp disrespect the FA Cup?
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Sheyi Ojo in action with Plymouth Argyle's Ben Purrington
Image credit: AFP
Playing almost a whole team of kids in the oldest cup competition in football smacks of a lack of respect for a venerable institution, but in truth Klopp only took a general trend to its extreme.
Bournemouth rotated all 11 players after a home draw against Arsenal in the league and paid for it with a 3-0 defeat to League One Millwall. Arsenal made changes and only narrowly beat Preston thanks to a last-minute goal from Olivier Giroud. On the flipside, Jose Mourinho rotated with Manchester United but won convincingly, 4-0 against Reading, and Tottenham eased past Aston Villa with a number of changes themselves.
Rotation is a feature of the early rounds of the cup and even FA chairman Martin Glenn says he has no problem with Premier League teams fielding weakened sides. He told the BBC on Sunday morning:
It doesn't upset me. The Premier League teams really understand the value the FA Cup brings them. You'll get more viewings of your club on free to air television than you will on paid satellite. People want to do well in the cup, but the positive side is that all of these bigger clubs have big squads, you want to give people game time and that's really important. Rotation is a good thing. Giving a chance for young players to get real game experience is not a bad thing.
There was no disrespect involved; Klopp just overplayed his hand when it came to resting his more important players at the most busy time of the season. The truth is simply that the FA Cup is no longer a priority for the big clubs when they have the Premier League and European competitions to consider, and hasn't been for some time. Klopp merely acknowledged this reality.
What can be done to restore the magic of the cup?
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A dearth of fans at Hull's match against Swansea
Image credit: Reuters
When even Hull and Cardiff are drawing pitiful crowds for FA Cup action - admittedly with the help of a fan protest against the ownership in the case of the former - it is clear something has gone amiss. Perhaps it is the fault of the TV companies who routinely showcase the biggest teams yet ignore good stories like AFC Wimbledon’s trip to Sutton on Saturday.
But perhaps the biggest boost to the FA Cup’s standing would be to grant the winners a place in the Champions League. It would revitalise the competition and ensure that Premier League teams were far less likely to roll the dice when it came to team selection.
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