Jurgen Klopp did not start Fabinho, Xherdan Shaqiri, and Jordan Henderson in Liverpool’s 4-0 demolition of West Ham United on Sunday, but he will soon, don’t worry.
That’s the message from the Reds’ boss to his newly-deep squad of players: I might’ve not used you today, but someone else will be in your shoes next time around.
[ RECAP: Liverpool 4-0 West Ham ]
“It’s only the middle of August and then in September the games will come,” Klopp said. “The future of football will be rotation. We need to be ready and have that quality. ... I told the boys one or two could be disappointed but that will change, if they make the best of their time.”
As for the match itself, Liverpool looked the part of genuine title challengers. Naby Keita was as advertised, and -- thanks to a lack of shots from West Ham -- it’s hard to tell whether Alisson is the answer in goal.
“It was good, not surprisingly good, but it was better than I could have expected because I saw a lot of pre-season hope on the pitch,” Klopp said.
He’s keeping it all in perspective:
Klopp: "West Ham will play for sure a good season, but they are not the Uniteds, the Citys. We have to be ready week in, week out for all the different situations." #LFC
— Neil Jones (@neiljonesgoal) August 12, 2018