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Friday 3 July 2020 18:48, UK
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp insists he will not be handing out Premier League appearances "like Christmas presents", despite the title having been secured.
In Liverpool's last two matches, 17-year-old Harvey Elliott, and Neco Williams and Curtis Jones, both 19, have all been included in the matchday squad and while Elliott and Williams (twice) have come off the bench, the Reds boss said it was not a charitable decision.
"I don't think these kinds of questions will be asked to Frank Lampard or Ole Gunnar Solskjaer," said Klopp.
"We are champions and we now should bring in the young boys, give them a chance, let's have a look. And when we lose a game, everyone is telling us we've lost focus.
"We want to win football games but to do that, the best players need to be on the pitch. If the young players are part of that, then they will be on the pitch.
"They are so close, they are really good and are our future. But they will not play now because I want to see them in the Premier League.
"We do not give Premier League games as Christmas presents. We cannot do that."
A week after being crowned Premier League champions, Liverpool were brought crashing down to earth by Manchester City, who dished out a 4-0 thrashing to Klopp's side at the Etihad Stadium.
It was only the Reds' second league defeat of the season and Klopp says his players learned a heavy lesson.
"We didn't lose a lot of games in the last two-and-a-half years," said the German. "But we have lost, and so far we've always used that for the next games.
"If you think about things we didn't do well, in this department we have to show a reaction. That doesn't mean changing everything, it means being spot on in these moments. You cannot switch off.
"As an example, Joe (Gomez) was on his own in the challenge with Raheem Sterling but he should have shouted at everybody around him. The other players maybe didn't look at him in that moment. These are the situations we have to change.
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"Hendo (Jordan Henderson) could have been there, usually Fabinho should have been there but he pushed up.
"If we want to achieve something special, the only way to do that is by being 100 per cent in that specific game, which means in all the specific situations.
"Do we have to lose 4-0 to learn that? I'm not sure, but it can help. It makes the point absolutely clear."
Klopp and Liverpool will attempt to return to winning ways on Sunday against Aston Villa, live on Sky Sports Premier League.
The Reds produced a stunning late smash-and-grab at Villa Park last November, Andrew Robertson equalising with three minutes remaining before Sadio Mane's 94th-minute strike snatched a 2-1 victory.
"That was a special game," said Klopp, whose side have won all 16 of their Premier League games at Anfield this season. "People will be speaking about it in 10 years, that it was one of the key moments of the season.
"I remember exactly how they scored the goal, our goals and other parts of the game, which doesn't always happen. It was a very important one for us.
"Villa was not in a bad moment at that time. Since then, a lot of things changed. Can we use this game for our preparation? Not really but in general it was a really important game.
"Since then, Aston Villa changed their system twice. They played a back five and in the last game, they played a diamond, bringing Jack Grealish into his best position. We don't know how they will line up against us.
"Some people say rhythm is better than a break. If it was an advantage for City last night, it should be an advantage for us against Aston Villa. They had a week off while we played on Thursday.
"We have to give Villa a proper fight. In possession, they make the pitch big, play diagonal balls, use their speed. They are good.
"But usually in games against top-six teams, they don't have 50-60 per cent of the ball, it's more like between 25 and 35.
"But it's not about that, it's about what they're doing in the moments where they have the ball, and us needing to have solutions for that."
