Klopp relieved 'Jekyll and Hyde' Liverpool ride out January
Jurgen Klopp said he was relieved to get through January with Liverpool still in the Premier League title race after a rollercoaster 3-1 win over Crystal Palace on Sunday.
Klopp's men shone despite the absence of Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane at the Africa Cup of Nations for the first half hour as they raced into a 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Virgil van Dijk and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
However, they needed goalkeeper Alisson Becker to be in top form and a controversial late penalty, converted by Fabinho, to secure a win that closes the gap on Manchester City at the top to nine points.
"It is obviously January which is a tricky period for us historically," said Klopp. "You play without three players in Africa and a few others so we had a small group to get through this but the boys did incredible.
"It was a bit Jekyll and Hyde football today. It showed how insanely good we can be and how bad as well!"
Liverpool also have a game in hand to come on City and will have Salah and Mane back in time for their next Premier League game in 18 days' time.
City's 12-game winning run in the league was brought to an end in a 1-1 draw at Southampton on Saturday to offer Liverpool a glimmer of hope.
But Klopp believes Liverpool still have a long way to go to reel in the champions.