Arsenal will prove to be a tough opponent for the Reds, expressed Liverpool FC boss Jurgen Klopp. as the Premier League champions get ready to face Mikel Arteta’s men in a double-header next week.
On Monday afternoon, Liverpool FC host the Gunners in a league fixture at Anfield and just days after going up against the North London outfit once again in a Carabao Cup clash. The Merseyside giants booked a fourth-round game with Arsenal following their nine-goal encounter against Lincoln City earlier this week.
Klopp hailed the impact of Arteta’s management at the Emirates Stadium since the ex-Manchester City assistant coach succeeded Unai Emery to the manager hot seat at Arsenal while speaking to Liverpool FC’s official website prior to the game on Monday.
“I’m not sure if I should compare it [with the past]. But Mikel Arteta showed in a very short period of time that he seems to be an exceptional football manager, obviously, because the team he sets up now – the structure of the team – is absolutely exceptional.”
“I have to say, since he’s there he did a pretty impressive job, to be honest, and changed I think the whole mood in the club.”
“That’s pretty impressive, I have to say. So it’s a tough, tough, tough opponent, 100 per cent.”
Having lost both of his previous meetings with Arsenal, a Premier League defeat away from home at the dying stages of Liverpool FC’s 2019-20 title-winning season, and then a FA Community Shield loss to the Gunners last month, Klopp will be wary of an Arsenal side that has been on the top of their defensive game lately, as was voiced by the German.
“It’s the defensive structure, 100 per cent. They defend properly, I have to say. All the players are involved in their defending, they defend probably in a 5-4-1, which when you have quality players in the team is, for the other team, a pretty tricky situation. Then with the speed they have for the counter-attack, that can cause you some trouble. That’s the situation, it’s pretty simple.”
In other news, Klopp also gave confirmation to previously existing speculation that Jordan Henderson will be sidelined for the Arsenal game due to a fresh injury concern for the Liverpool FC skipper.
