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Mark Lawrenson claims Liverpool defeat may be good for them
Ex-Liverpool defender Mark Lawrenson believes his former side could benefit from their defeat to Napoli on Tuesday night.
The Reds started the defence of their Champions League crown by losing 2-0 away to Italian side Napoli.
After a decent performance during the game, Jurgen Klopp’s team fell apart in the closing stages to lose the match.
Dries Mertens converted a penalty for the hosts on 82nd minute after Andy Robertson controversially conceded a spot-kick.
Virgil Van Dijk then made an uncharacteristic mistake to gift ex-Tottenham striker Fernando Llorente a 92nd minute goal.
But pundit Lawrenson feels that the mid-week defeat is the type of result that will sharpen up Liverpool in the long run and it could end up benefiting.
“Liverpool’s late defeat by Napoli was a real slap in the face, but sometimes that is not the worst thing that can happen to a team,”
“Jurgen Klopp’s side have coasted through their five Premier League games this season and had probably forgotten what it felt like to lose.
“So, this was a reminder of what happens in top-level football if you don’t take your chances and also lose your concentration in defence, whether you are champions of Europe or not.”
TBR’s View:
A rare defensive lapse in concentration did let down Liverpool against Napoli, while they weren’t as clinical as usual going forward too.
But an opening defeat in the Champions League doesn’t mean they can’t qualify out of the group and they have got the toughest fixture on paper out of the way.
After cruising through the beginning of the Premier League, it would have done Liverpool wonders to be in a test against someone with Napoli’s qualities.
Klopp’s team sit top of the Premier League with a 100 per cent record after five matches and have looked irresistible, but midweek was a wake-up call before they travel to Chelsea at the weekend.