Peter Crouch has given a brutal verdict on Liverpool’s loss to Bournemouth. The former striker claims his old side were complacent following their 7-0 drubbing of Manchester United last weekend.
Jurgen Klopp was hoping his team continued their fine run of form in the Premier League and close the gap on Tottenham in fourth. The Reds had kept five clean sheets in a row in the top flight, winning four of those matches.
But the trip to bottom side Bournemouth did not go as many expected. Liverpool were wasteful in front of goal and the Cherries were clinical when needed.
Philip Billing put Bournemouth ahead in the first half. Liverpool pushed for an equaliser and had the perfect opportunity to draw level in the 70th minute.
But Mohamed Salah fired a penalty wide after Adam Smith was deemed to have handled in his area. The result brings Liverpool back down to earth following their biggest-ever win over United.
Crouch’s theory after the game was that Liverpool took Bournemouth far lighter than they should have, claiming it is far easier to get up for a match against United than it was at the Vitality Stadium. He said on BT Sport: “It’s easy to get up for a Manchester United game.
“It’s a lot harder to come to Bournemouth, bottom of the league, for the early kick-off. 100 per cent [it was] complacency, you saw it in a lot of the play.
“Some of the passes were sloppy, some of the defending was really lax – trying to play offside, doing the lazy things, not going with runners. We saw it with the goal – people switching off, not tracking back with the same intensity that they had last week.
“Top teams don’t play like that. Also a top, top team, when they come to Bournemouth, you expect them to have 20 shots on goal, have some cleared off the line, some luck here and there.
“But in all honesty, Bournemouth deserved it today. The best chances for Liverpool today were some set pieces, [Virgil] van Dijk headers, there was nothing really clear-cut. I think [Diogo] Jota came on and made a difference, but other than that there were no clear-cut chances.”
Liverpool play the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie against Real Madrid on Tuesday. They need to turn around a three-goal deficit following the 5-2 loss at Anfield last month.
Want the latest Premier League news as we publish it on Express Sport? Join our new Facebook group by clicking here
For all the latest Sports News Click Here
For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News.
