Jurgen Klopp and Georginio Wijnaldum faced the media in Amsterdam ahead of Liverpool’s Champions League clash with Ajax tomorrow night.
The Liverpool manager was reduced to hitting himself in the head to express his frustration with the continuous enquiry of Virgil Van Dijk, Thiago Alcantara and whether Liverpool will make any moves in the January transfer window.
He said: “I am here because of the champions league game and I want to focus on the champions league game. But you ask these questions [about Virgil Van Dijk’s injury]”
The Liverpool manager did appear very optimistic when speaking on the rest of the season and tomorrow’s game at the Johan Cruyff Arena claiming: “We will give it a proper try [to beat Ajax] I promise you. No excuses.”
The current injury crisis at Liverpool will have a silver lining for midfielder, Wijnaldum. The former PSV player’s chances of starting against his old rivals have significantly increased giving him the chance to prove his worth.
Of course, having teammates out injured, especially of the calibre of his fellow Dutch international has a negative impact on the squad. This was evident as Wijnaldum said:
“We are still devastated. This one is different than normal, the way it happened is really hard for us and I think everyone still has a really bad feeling about it.”
This will be the first time the two sides have locked horns competitively since 1966 after being drawn against different sides in the 18/19 semi-final draw.
Ajax proved themselves as the dark horses in that campaign but came unstuck against a Lucas Moura driven Tottenham Hotspur team who Liverpool comfortably beat 2-0 in the final.
Tomorrow night’s game is set to be a thriller as both sides look to make amends for disappointing exits from the UEFA Champions League in recent seasons.
