Liverpool are set to change their summer pre-season plans following manager Jurgen Klopp‘s complaints, according to reports.
The Reds have suffered an injury crisis and dramatic loss of form this season after an excellent 2021-22 campaign which saw them reach the final of four competitions and win the FA Cup and League Cup.
Earlier this year, the German boss admitted he would rather have done things differently than his usual ‘golden rule’ – to go to Europe after a money-spinning trip to Asia – after a gruelling but lucrative pre-season tour last summer.
And according to the Liverpool Echo, the club have taken his concerns on board and will switch things up in 2023.
When asked what he might to differently in pre-season to avoid a spate of injuries, Klopp said: ‘I wouldn’t go, in the first week, to Asia. Not because Asia is not great, but I would go to Asia in the third week, or something like that, but it was not in really in our hands.
‘Is that the reason (for the injuries and poor form)? No, I don’t think so. But would it have been better to do it differently? Yes. We learn from these kind of things, but in the end we have to deal with them.
‘We played until the last match day (last season). We planned the pre-season long before that, but we were in a super positive mood, we could have won everything. We didn’t win everything and we had to deal with that. It’s not that just because we are Liverpool we are not allowed to have problems.’
Klopp generally prefers to attend more streamlined trips to Europe – for example Evian-les-Bains in France or Austrian alpine town Saalfelden – after a lucrative spell in Asia or North America.
Last summer, Liverpool played Crystal Palace in front of 50,000 fans at the National Stadium in Singapore, and it is understood a return to Singapore is being weighed up. However, a trip to Las Vegas is believed to be off the table.
It was reported earlier in 2023 that Klopp and the club are considering a stint in German Black Forest town Donaueschingen, where Klopp has previously visited while at Borussia Dortmund, and where the likes of Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Brentford have stayed in recent years.
Plans, however, are thought to be fluid at this point, with Liverpool open to several different options.
Last summer, Reds commercial director Ben Latty said: ‘Pre-season tour is a vitally important time of year for our players to prepare for the upcoming season, and it provides a fantastic opportunity to meet with fans around the world.
‘Since the start of the pandemic we’ve been unable to travel for pre-season and so we’re extremely excited to be able to visit our supporters globally once again and compete in games like ‘The Match’ (against Man United).’
SOURCE: dailymail.co.uk
