Jurgen Klopp says Liverpool must give “absolutely everything every game” and ignore the surrounding talk heading into the season’s climax, with the matches ahead “all finals”.
Having already won the League Cup in what is their final campaign before Klopp steps down as boss, the Reds’ bid to add the Premier League title sees them currently second in the table behind leaders Arsenal on goal difference and a point ahead of third-placed Manchester City with 10 rounds of games to go.
They are also through to the Europa League quarter-finals, playing Atalanta over two legs next month.
Liverpool host Brighton in the league on Sunday, just before City and Arsenal meet at the Etihad Stadium.
And when asked at his pre-match press conference what was key for success in the final push, Klopp said: “Give absolutely everything and ignore the mess you try to create, with after each game ‘you won it, you lost it, now you are champions, now you are out, now you have no chance any more, now you have to do it’. Just ignore that, just dig in and go.
“We have to give absolutely everything in each and every game – home, away, in England, in Italy, wherever we go.
“It’s for us 12 games for sure, maybe 14, maybe 15. That’s not the biggest number but it’s only a short period of time.
“It’s all tricky and we need luck, with injuries we didn’t have that so far. Hopefully we have it now with boys coming back. We need them.
“And then it’s in each game to find a way to win. We found a way how it’s good for us to play, and that’s what we have to do.
Watching on…
— Liverpool FC (@LFC)
“Before the (international) break we had two games – (Manchester) United (a 4-3 extra-time defeat in the FA Cup quarter-finals) and City (a 1-1 draw in the league). In parts of these games, it was the best games we played this season. Now we are back… and now let’s go.”
Klopp added: “These are all finals for us – it is like that. It does not mean you cannot lose one or whatever. We have to play them like normal football games.
“I think everybody is excited about it, and rightly so. Anfield will be rocking on Sunday. We have not only home games unfortunately but we have still a few, and there we must make the difference.
“(If) you want to win anything, you need to play top, top, top football, you need to be lucky – what I hope we are from now on with injuries – and then let’s see what we can do.”
Klopp’s men face a Brighton side whose manager Roberto De Zerbi has been linked with Liverpool.
The Italian’s first game in charge of Brighton was a 3-3 draw at Anfield in October 2022, and the meetings since have been 3-0 and 2-1 victories for the Seagulls and a 2-2 draw earlier this term.
Klopp said: “Roberto is doing an incredible job there. It was quite impressive how quick he got the team in his way, and since then, it only got better, it’s really impressive. He’s a top coach, he’s doing really well.
“On their day, they can beat any team. But, good news – we can do that as well, and so we will try.”
While Liverpool are assessing Andy Robertson, they are set to have Ibrahima Konate back available on Sunday and possibly Curtis Jones.
Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Diogo Jota are “not too far away” in their recoveries, Klopp has said.
