Klopp explains tactical tweak Liverpool made at Southampton

Matt Stead

Jurgen Klopp says Liverpool “could adjust” their tactics against Southampton to ensure victory.

Liverpool continued their perfect start to the Premier League season with a 2-1 win at St Mary’s on Saturday.

Sadio Mane opened the scoring at the end of an underwhelming first half, before Roberto Firmino helped earn all three points in a much assured and controlled second period.

Klopp suggests that Liverpool simply made more use of their “space on the wings” after half-time.

“I think Southampton tried to kill our game with their formation and they played different against Burnley obviously,” Klopp told Liverpool’s official website.

“They had a real proper fight at the back, so that gave us space on the wings. We used that but not often enough, otherwise they would have had to run much more. We could adjust that a little bit at half-time.

“I’m really happy. It’s so important. The start of the season is so important. Having an away game at Southampton is always difficult, but in the week we had, it was special.”