Klopp: 'We targeted Neymar'

BeSoccer 5 years ago 3.3k
Neymar had little impact. GOAL

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp revealed his side decided to target Paris Saint-Germain's left flank as Neymar is "not a defender".

Neymar was targeted by Liverpool due to his defensive weaknesses, manager Jurgen Klopp confirmed after the Reds' last-gasp Champions League win.

Roberto Firmino came off the bench to rifle in a stoppage-time winner at Anfield after Paris Saint-Germain had battled back from 2-0 down in Tuesday's Group C opener.

Neymar was involved in creating Kylian Mbappe's late equaliser but the Brazilian otherwise struggled to exert much influence on a pulsating contest, with PSG's attack lacking fluidity. And Neymar regularly failed to track runs from Trent Alexander-Arnold, with one such foray from the Liverpool right-back contributing to Daniel Sturridge's headed opener.

Klopp revealed Liverpool deliberately targeted the PSG left wing as he knew Neymar would not follow Alexander-Arnold when the defender got forward.

"They changed a bit of the system, we expected it and didn't think too much about it," Klopp told BT Sport. 

"Neymar on the left was not a bad idea and makes defending more difficult, we needed more focus and we felt we did really well.

"We covered a lot of yards and closed all the gaps and when we had the ball made them run and used the right wing. Neymar is world-class but not a defender so we tried to do that."

Thomas Meunier's low volley cut Liverpool's lead in the first half and the Belgium international suggested PSG should consider following the Reds' tactical plan.

"We have done what we could, we are trying to introduce a new tactical plan and for the moment we are not doing too badly," Meunier said to RMC Sport.

"The pressure was strong with a super high Liverpool block. We also tried to keep our block a little higher. To play with a low block at this level is to shoot yourself in the foot. We managed quite well defensively.

"Nothing catastrophic, we have all the cards in hand for qualification. We could take Liverpool as an example with their deep, simple, fast game, with a lot of intensity."

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