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Jurgen Klopp desperate for Liverpool to win "one football game"

Defeat to Fulham was a sixth loss in succession at home.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp admits if the players are to rebuild their shattered confidence winning a match would be helpful.

The 1-0 defeat to Fulham courtesy of Mario Lemina's maiden goal for the club was the sixth in succession at home, extending the worst run in their history.

Injuries have taken a toll on Klopp's defending Premier League champions but they have reached a point where they cannot even score as they have now gone more than 11 hours without a goal from open play at Anfield.

Liverpool players after defeat by Fulhamague – Anfield
Liverpool are still looking for a way out of their poor run following defeat to Fulham (Clive Brunskill/PA)

"We have to win football games, we have to win one football game, that would be helpful already and then we will see (with) the rest," he said.

"Believe me, these boys want it but it doesn't work in the moment.

"I cannot just say, 'Yeah, we don't have mentality.' We have mentality, it's just not the mentality we are used to probably, but the boys want to win games.

"We have really tight results in the moment, pretty much always against us, and we have to make sure we win football games again.

"If it's a 1-0, it's fine, fight for it with all you have and then you can gain confidence and momentum maybe again. In the moment we don't have that."

The issue Klopp now has, apart from falling further behind in the race for the top four, is that next up is RB Leipzig in the Champions League.

They hold a 2-0 lead from the last-16 first-leg tie but since that victory they have won just one of the last four, at bottom side Sheffield United.

The one advantage may be the home game is being played once again in Budapest due to coronavirus restrictions and not at Anfield, where they have developed a mental block.

Klopp knows confidence is so fragile they cannot afford the slightest slip-up against the Bundesliga side.

"We made mistakes still, that's the problem. The boys don't want to make mistakes, we just made them," he added.

"We have to make sure the mistakes we make are not accountable any more.

"You can concede a goal – we conceded goals in our best phases, the best periods of our lives – but the only thing is then you are not bothered about it. That's where we have to come (to)."

While Liverpool's downward spiral continues Fulham are upwardly mobile and thoroughly deserved their win.

Fulham have lost just once in the last seven and are now only in the bottom three by virtue of having a goal difference three worse than Brighton's.

"A win like this galvanises, not that we needed it or a result to give us belief or an understanding of what we can do as it's constantly been there," said manager Scott Parker.

Scott Parker
Scott Parker is steering Fulham towards safety (Clive Brunskill/PA)

"While results can give you that extra bit of belief this is a team which has real belief.

"What is happening around us, who we are dragging in, is irrelevant and remains to be the case.

"It is about us, wanting to get better, and keep moving in the right direction and that will not change.

"We will carry on for the remainder of the season in the same vein.

"All I ask from the team is that there is a work ethic and constant belief, an understanding of what we need to do to get results and not let the bumps cripple us.

"Don't worry about the noise, who is winning, who ain't winning."

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Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp pictured on February 16, 2021
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TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool14112129111835
2Chelsea1594235181731
3Arsenal1585229151429
4Manchester CityMan City158342721627
5Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest157441918125
6Aston Villa157442323025
7Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton156632522324
8Bournemouth157352320324
9Brentford157263128323
10Fulham156542220223
11Tottenham HotspurSpurs1562731191220
12Newcastle UnitedNewcastle155551921-220
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd155461918119
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham155372028-818
15Everton143561421-714
16Leicester CityLeicester153572130-914
17Crystal Palace152761420-613
18Ipswich TownIpswich151681427-139
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves1523102338-159
20Southampton1512121131-205


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