With their shock 2-1 defeat to Manchester United at Old Trafford, Liverpool have officially started the Premier League season badly.
A 2-2 draw away at newly promoted Fulham can be written off. Even the 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace at home in their next game wasn’t cause for concern.
However, failing to get back on track in such disappointing fashion against a United team who began the season even more poorly than them is a sign of a larger problem.
Jurgen Klopp insisted his team played well, but admitted he is concerned, particularly with Liverpool’s injuries.
Read: Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal Boat Is Rocking
Liverpool were without Thiago, Joel Matip and Ibrahima Konate on Monday night. Fabinho only made the bench, meaning Milner, Henderson and Elliot started in midfield.
Elliot is perhaps still too young, and Milner and Henderson can’t sustain the sort of intensity Klopp wants by themselves. It’s no wonder they were outworked by a United side who themselves were outworked in the previous weekend’s 4-0 defeat to Brentford.
“It’s obvious we are in a tricky situation injury-wise, we get through the week with 14-15 senior players available, we have to make sure none of them get injured because there’s no real options left any more,” Klopp said.
Read: How Much Emotion Is Too Much In Football?
Liverpool’s start isn’t just bad for the current iteration of the team. This is the first time they have failed to win any of their opening three games in over a decade.
“I’m concerned about our situation, it’s not easy at the moment but that’s how it is. We prepare now for Bournemouth, Newcastle and Everton – that’s how it is. We can play better, we know that, but we had a lot of good moments and performances today.
“From tomorrow, we will fight against it.”
