Juergen Klopp has warned Liverpool fans that if they are unable to attend Saturday’s Premier League match against Arsenal, they should give their tickets away.
The Reds manager was unimpressed with the atmosphere at Anfield after Liverpool thrashed West Ham 5-1 on Wednesday night (Thursday AEDT) to advance to a record 19th League Cup semi-final.
Klopp felt the crowd was lifeless after last weekend’s dismal 0-0 stalemate with Manchester United and wants more for the forthcoming top-of-the-table showdown.
“We changed a lot of things and we dominated West Ham like crazy and missed chances,” the German was quoted as saying.
“I was not overly pleased with the atmosphere behind me in the first half, when the boys played exceptionally well.”
“I’m not sure if the Man United game was so bad that we had to apologize for not smashing them?”
“This week, Arsenal did not play. They’ve prepared for this game, and everybody who knows them knows they’ll be ready.
“So we need Anfield to be on their toes from the start, without me getting into an argument with the opposing coach.”
“If it is too much football in December, if you are not in the right shape, give your ticket to somebody else.”
Liverpool took the lead at the break thanks to a fantastic Dominik Szoboszlai goal before going on to win easily against a sluggish Hammers team thanks to a double from Curtis Jones and goals from Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah.
Liverpool, who are attempting to win the competition for the tenth time in a row, will now face Fulham in the semi-finals.
“Wembley is a fantastic stadium, and we definitely want to return.” “I was pleased that we could put on a performance like this tonight,” Klopp added.
“We had a lot of great performances.” It was one of those nights when we could relax and enjoy the game.”
West Ham manager David Moyes says he is dealing with increased expectations following last season’s Europa Conference League victory, despite a run of seven victories and one defeat prior to their thrashing on Merseyside.
“We’ve had an unbelievable run,” remarked Moyes, whose team could only muster a Jarrod Bowen consolation.
“What are West Ham’s expectations?”
“Do you think we’ll win a European trophy?” Do you think we’ll compete for the Champions League? There aren’t many people nodding their heads in here, so those are the facts.
“The realities are that we’ve been doing quite well. We had to overcome Arsenal at home to get to this game, and perhaps you expected us to win.
“Tonight was a really tough tie for anyone coming to Anfield.”