Klopp hits out at ‘bullsh*t’ Thiago criticism: He needs time to adapt

Robin Bairner

• Updated: 19 May 2021 15:43 BST
• 2 min read

Thiago Alcantara must be given time to adapt to Liverpool and the Premier League, Jurgen Klopp says.

Thiago arrived from Bayern Munich for £25 million in the summer and was expected to be an instant hit at Anfield.

Instead, the 29-year-old has had a sluggish start in the Premier League.

Klopp, however, believes that those targeting the 29-year-old must be more patient with him.

“He came in late, which is just the nature of some transfers, then he got Covid, got injured, and still had to adapt to a new team – and a team which was not exactly flying with no problems at all,” the Liverpool boss said to Sky Sports.

“We’ve had to rebuild the team pretty much every three days because of changing the last line and changing a lot of things, so that’s just really unlucky for Thiago. But he has played some exceptional games and had some exceptional moments on the pitch, and he is so respected in the squad.

“It’s just a public perception. ‘Oh, Thiago is in and we don’t perform well anymore.’ These kind of things are just bullsh*t, let me say it like that! They are just not right.

“Everybody needs time to adapt. Bayern played a different style, in a different league, and were much more dominant in the Bundesliga than any team can be in the Premier League.

“So, that’s all different. But thank God, we are all smart enough to judge the situation correctly here. Thiago can play better football, yes, of course, but we all can play better football. No doubt about it.”

Liverpool’s Premier League title defence appears to be over as they lie 16 points behind Manchester City with 14 games remaining, but they remain in the thick of the battle for Champions League spots and play Everton on Saturday.