Klopp reassures Lallana after admitting Reds made ‘mistake’

Ian Watson

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has reassured Adam Lallana he still has a key part to play for the remainder of the season.

The England midfielder has not started a match since the FA Cup win over Everton in early January after two setbacks from a thigh problem saw him miss the first four months of the campaign.

Lallana has managed just 186 minutes of Premier League action since making his comeback from that pre-season injury in November, but against Porto he could be in line for his first European appearance since the 2016 Europa League final defeat to Sevilla.

“Adam, absolutely was an integral part of the team and with the competition we have for Adam it is still usually not a problem for him, because he is important to us,” said Klopp.

“But he needed only time. Life is to learn from your mistakes and we all have to learn.

“We made this mistake – he looked fit. Maybe two little setbacks, not the biggest setbacks, but in and out, in and out, and that makes no sense so now we have to build with him. He is coming close.

“But of course he now has no rhythm, which is another thing. We still need him, we will use him still.

“He is cool, he sees the quality of the team is good, but he is always one of the guys who push the level in training on to the next level, because he is always so intense in all the things he is doing.

“So the time will come for him 100 per cent. Whether it is tomorrow, I don’t know.”