According to Jurgen Klopp, Naby Keita and Thiago Alcantara’s soothing presence made Stefan Bajcetic shine as Liverpool defeated Wolves 1-0 in the FA Cup.
Klopp‘s team had a rough start to 2023, but Harvey Elliott’s first-half wondergoal was enough to turn things around as the Cup holders battled at Molineux to advance to the fourth round.
On Tuesday night, Bajcetic was making only his third start of the year and provided a calm performance at the center of a midfield that has come under intense scrutiny recently as requests to enter the transfer market from outside the club persist.
Klopp was impressed with the Spanish midfielder and believes he benefited from the quality and experience around him as Thiago turned in a much-improved display and Keita completed 90 minutes on his first start since late May.
The younger you are, the more you need a strong start in the game, Klopp said. “Stefan is a good boy, a good player, very smart in his movements.” He did pretty well in a few circumstances where I’m not sure if he turned because he spotted space or just hoped there was space.
“He wins these challenges, and that is incredibly fantastic. He also makes the last few steps before he blocks the ball, and having Thiago next to him is really useful.
“Thiago speaks a lot on the field, and tonight Naby was there, which is incredibly useful. Both wingers played excellent defense, and Cody stayed near the center for us.
“Excellent full-backs, composed central defenders, and Caoimhin (Kelleher) was available when we needed him. The game was enjoyable. The fourth round was where we wanted to be. Tonight is a crucial indicator for both our people back home and for us that things of this nature are indeed doable. There is a big game this weekend, and I don’t know what the crowd would have thought if we had played another one like the last one when they got at the stadium, but they now have something to look forward to, and we will battle together once more.”
James Milner was one of eight substitutions for the game, starting at right-back for the first time in in a month.
James Milner was one of eight changes on the night as he started at right-back on his first appearance for nearly a month and Klopp was pleased with the performance of his experienced vice-captain.
Klopp continued: “He was outstanding, and both the oldest and the youngest players were very amazing. In a game like this, Milly, it’s crucial that you don’t lose control since the lads played well. The guys did dip a little bit deeper, which I didn’t enjoy too much, and the wolves did rise a little. We did pretty well, we made changes, but we had to be serious and prudent about doing this at the appropriate times since none of the players we removed was something we wanted to do.”
I’ve stated it before, but I want to retain Roberto Firmino at the club, the Reds manager added, reiterating his desire for Firmino to agree to a new contract at Anfield.