da 888casino： This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…
da fazobetai： Jurgen Klopp has revealed a boost for Naby Keita that may well have been holding him back earlier in his Anfield career – his language skills.
What’s the word?
Speaking about the Guinea international during the build-up to the clash with Red Bull Salzburg, Klopp revealed that Keita is now chatting with the boss in English.
As quoted in The Liverpool Echo, Klopp said: “The last talk I had with him was in English and it looked like he understood what I said. That is a big step. He is here long enough now. It was a big step for him to come here from Leipzig with big expectations, and hopefully you all still remember how good he started.â€
He continued: “He is a smart boy so football-wise it is not a problem. The tactical things are obvious, they are clear, and he was in pre-season with us so he has done all the important stuff. But understanding the language helps massively.”
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Major boost
Klopp’s tendency to slowly bed signings in – just like he did with Andy Robertson and Fabinho – has often been attributed to a difficulty adjusting to his high-level tactics.
The chaotic gegenpressing of the German’s early career is a thing of the past, with the Reds now representing a more controlled and dominant counter-pressing style – only Manchester City and Chelsea keep the ball more than the Reds this season.
And with Keita switching from a Red Bull Leipzig side who usually used him in a 4-2-3-1 formation to a Klopp team that is nearly always set up with a midfield three, there was always going to be some teething issues.
That said, adding problems with the language to that would have made it almost impossible for the 24 year-old to replicate his Leipzig form, so Klopp’s comments should be music to fans’ ears, with some fans already deducing that the language barrier was a factor.
The gaffer even says that football-wise there was “not a problemâ€, implying it was really his inability to comprehend the complexities in Liverpool’s style that was holding him back.
With the manager now saying Keita’s improved understanding of English “helps massively†we should expect to see a completely different player to the one who largely disappointed in his debut campaign.