Klopp admits Liverpool ‘miss’ Coutinho after Newcastle win

Joe Williams

Jurgen Klopp thinks Liverpool miss Philippe Coutinho but he is glad that his side aren’t showing that they miss him on the pitch.

The Reds are up to second in the Premier League after goals from Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane gave them a 2-0 victory over Newcastle United on Saturday.

“It was a difficult game, we knew it was going to be beforehand and we felt it during the game,” Klopp told BT Sport.

“I thought the boys were brilliant and they did what they needed to do. There were two wonderful goals, a few more were possible, and it was a world-class save from Loris Karius. He didn’t have much more to do than that. I’m happy.

“Mo Salah is a very offensive midfielder, more of a striker than a holding player. He has this desire for scoring.

“Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is still a young boy, he can be much more consistent and much more of a threat. He doesn’t feel a greed for scoring but we will work on that. He’s a very important player for us.

“The response is what we’d hoped for [after Coutinho’s departure]. He was a world-class player and we miss him, but we don’t see it on the pitch. It’s the job of the boys to make sure that we don’t show that we miss him.”