Jurgen Klopp has compared Fabinho’s acclimatisation issues at Liverpool to what Ilkay Gundogan experienced when he was at Borussia Dortmund.
The Anfield manager explained at his media briefing on Friday the Brazil international is “close” to breaking into the team but needs “to get used to different things” at the club he joined in the summer.
Klopp explained, as quoted by the personal Twitter account of Echo correspondent James Pearce, that he had experienced the same situation as a manager when Gundogan didn’t play for half a season at Dortmund.
Klopp on Fabinho: "He's close. I didn't see him for 10 days. Not best thing to judge how he is. But he was never far away. He just needed to get used to different things. I've had this situation before – Gundogan didn't play for half a year."
— James Pearce (@JamesPearceLFC) October 19, 2018
OPINION
Liverpool fans are understandably concerned at the lack of impact made by Fabinho since he was recruited for around £43million in the summer. The 24-year-old has yet to make his Premier League debut, with his only action so far coming in the League Cup and through two substitute appearances in the Champions League. Fabinho looked off the pace in all those run-outs and has yet to convince Klopp in training that he is ready to play in the main competitions. Surely, he should be closer to a first-team start by now, even though James Milner and Georginio Wijnaldum have begun the season excellently in central midfield for the title challengers. Gundogan was a key player for Klopp at Dortmund, and is equally influential at high-flying City after overcoming serious knee problems. If Fabinho can match the impact the Germany international made at Dortmund, then Liverpool and their supporters will be delighted.