Liverpool were left frustrated on Wednesday evening, as they were held to a goalless draw against Newcastle United at St James’ Park.
The Reds dominated the possession as expected, but were unable to find the goal that they needed to take the three points from this one.
Curtis Jones started in the midfield for Liverpool, which might have come as a surprise to some of the club’s supporters as the youngster received a 5/10 rating (Express) for his performance vs West Brom.
Speaking on the latest episode of the LFC Daytrippers podcast (4:01), Grizz Khan vented his frustrations at Klopp’s decision to start Jones, and thought that Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain or Xherdan Shaqiri would have been a better option to have up against a defence-minded Newcastle team.
“I don’t understand how Jones is playing after the performance he put in (against West Brom), especially the mistake. Sometimes kids need to be pulled out, not only to teach them a lesson but to watch professionals like Gini or Henderson or Thiago for example on the way they come across and perform on the pitch.
“It’s still an education for Curtis Jones, we have to remember that he’s still a kid and he’s still learning.
“I didn’t understand the selection of Curtis Jones, I thought if Milner was going to come into the midfield as I suspected last night, I thought the third midfielder would be far more attacking, someone like Ox or Shaqiri, but it was Jones.
“Jones is another one who likes to come deep and get the ball, and that was a major issue in the speed of our play.”
Liverpool take on Southampton at St Mary’s in their next match on 4th January, in what could potentially be a tricky test for Jurgen Klopp’s side, with the Saints currently sat ninth in the Premier League table after a strong start to the 2020/21 season.
TIF thoughts on the criticism from Grizz over Klopp’s decision to start Jones against Newcastle United on Wednesday evening…
We have to agree with Grizz here. Jones displays similar attributes to that of Jordan Henderson in the Liverpool team with the Reds skipper making over 50 passes in all but four of his matches this season. Jones does often like to come deep to receive the ball, with the youngster making over 70 passes in all but one of his starts for Klopp’s side this term.
That wasn’t what Liverpool needed against a team like Newcastle, that are going to be defending deep in their own half to try and take something from the game.
It’s definitely two important points dropped again for Liverpool, and that will frustrate the club’s supporters, as some of their promotion rivals close-in on them heading into the New Year.
Klopp needs to make sure that he gets his team selection right in their next match, as Southampton could have the quality in their team to cause Liverpool problems.