Liverpool came from behind against a physical Burnley side to take all three points at Turf Moor in a battling 3-1 victory.
Jurgen Klopp, who made seven changes to the team who played Everton - electing to drop Mohammed Salah and Roberto Firmino to the bench - was unhappy with Burnley's aggressive approach to the game which saw some strong, but legal, challenges.
"They wanted to be aggressive," Klopp told a news conference. "Aggression is a part of football. You try something, and you need someone to say 'be careful'.
"There were a lot of situations, challenges. There was nothing to say 'wow, too much' - they were normal challenges. But with six or seven yards and then [slide], these times are over. They are over.
"We all want to win football games, and there are different ways of doing it. Somebody has to tell you to stop doing it, make two more steps and make a normal challenge. Don't go five yards before the player, because the grass is wet, and take any risk [out of the tackle]," said the German manager (as quoted by FourFourTwo)
After 20 minutes of play, Ben Mee produced a strong challenge on Joe Gomez and the Liverpool youngster was thrown into the advertising boards at Turf Moor. This would prove to be the last action for the defender as he was stretched off holding his ankle.
"It's not intentional, but these are the situations. The boy with the ball is a bit unlucky because what can happen is what happened to Joe Gomez. I think the referee has to make sure that things like this don't happen constantly. It's not how it should be. Let's play football."
Klopp's men were lucky to go into the break at 0-0 as Ashley Barnes produced a stunning volley which flew into the net - only to be overturned by the raised offside flag.
"I was really happy we could go into half-time and adjust a few things. We made our lives difficult for ourselves.
"We controlled the game in a lot of moments. The second half was the perfect reaction and I'm really happy about the three points."
Naby Keita was one of the better performers for Liverpool, who were well from their best in this fixture and Klopp was happy with the
Naby Keita is today’s MOTM based on your votes Reds!
— LFC Transfer Room (@LFCTransferRoom) December 5, 2018
90 Minutes Played
6 Total Shots
6 Shots On Target
59 Passes
93% Pass Success
77 Touches
10 Recoveries
1 Aerial Duel Won
Guinean Gem pic.twitter.com/G2ShlVa5zL
"Naby made all the difference, I think his blocked shot was the biggest chance we had in the first half. It looked like a proper chance. Second half, one-two with Mo [Salah], good finish, bit lucky for Burnley.
"I was shouting that we had to use Naby. We played long balls, big switch, and Naby was constantly overlooked. He was good," added Klopp.
Following the match Burnley manager Sean Dyche appeared to berate Klopp long after the pair shook hands, though the Reds manager seemed bemused by Dyche's complaints.
Why the hell was Dyche that agitated at the end of the match? He seemed to be saying something to Klopp about the third goal
— Mensh (@mechamensh) December 5, 2018
You were trailing by a goal and you weren't particularly "outstanding" during the match, don't pretend to be robbed#BURLIV
Liverpool travel to Bournemouth in the Premier League on Saturday having achieved their greatest ever start to a season in the victory at Turf Moor.
Source : 90min