Disappointing. One word sums up the draw with Bournemouth.
Once again Jurgen Klopp’s tactics have cost us dearly. After having come back from an early goal from the visitors then taking the lead the manager chose to replace Philippe Coutinho with Joel Matip with 25 minutes left to play. Shoring up the defence when faced with an opposition team determined to get back into the game would be a wise move, but tinkering with a team that was controlling the game and dominating possession seemed totally unnecessary.
In his post-match press conference Klopp explained that Coutinho was feeling ill. That may well be the case, although it was difficult to believe considering he was the best player on the field up to his substitution, but surely for the sake of the team dynamics you hold out for those few remaining minutes and claim a much-deserved three points. As it transpired, the substitution and switch to a back five just caused confusion and to their credit Bournemouth took advantage.
We’ve had managers in the past who have been far too inflexible during the game to switch things around and improve situations, but there are other times when you need to keep momentum. Last night was one of those times.