JURGEN KLOPP said the ball used in the FA Cup was to blame for Adrian’s howler in their defeat to Chelsea last night.
The Liverpool boss delved into his book of excuses to come up with a new one after being knocked out in the 2-0 loss at Stamford Bridge.
Willian drew first blood when his shot was fumbled by back-up keeper Adrian into the net in the 13th minute.
But speaking afterwards, Klopp made it clear that Adrian’s blunder could be put down to the type of ball used in the game.
He said: “The first goal, we lose a ball, what was it 18/19 yards in front of the goal?
“The specific characteristic of the ball and Willian’s shooting technique made life really difficult.
“Before that Adrian saved a sensational ball. He caught the ball and quick restart, which was a good idea, but not everybody was ready.
“Fabinho was surprised by the pass. We wanted to play like this but we lose that ball and they finish it off.”
Liverpool are 22 points clear in the Premier League using the Nike Merlin ball which, along with a list of other innovations, claims to have four fuse-wielded panels that provide a “bigger sweet spot for ball striking”.
Its “Aerowtrack” grooves also help “ensure a more consistent flight”.
But in the FA Cup, the ball of choice is the Mitre Delta Max FA Football, which is said to be “developed with a laminated power bladder that ensures ball shape and flight remain true”.
It’s fair to say fine margins decide games and the type of ball could make a difference – but this only adds to Klopp’s list of unusual excuses.
In December 2015, Klopp blamed “extreme wind” in England for Liverpool struggling to implement his “Gegenpress” philosophy.
Just two months after taking over at Anfield, Liverpool were 10th in table after eight wins, five draws and three losses with the German at the helm.
And Klopp took aim at the weather, saying: “The English game is not faster than the German game. Perhaps there are a few more sprints.
‘DIFFERENT FOOTBALL DUE TO WEATHER’
“But there is a different style of football here, partially due to the weather.
“The wind can be quite extreme in England. We are not familiar with that in Germany and you have to keep things simple.
“Players who are not from the UK have to get used to the winds.
“I have to adapt my style of football as a result as well. Often, you are forced to keep things simple.
“And there are a lot more duels for the second ball here, and more duels in general. That makes the game even more intense.”
Klopp took another swipe at the wind in January 2017, after overseeing a League Cup semi-final defeat at the hands of Southampton.
Despite boasting 83 per cent possession, the Reds slipped to a 1-0 loss on the night – 2-0 on aggregate – to miss out on a trip to Wembley.
But it wasn’t his team’s fault, Klopp explained: “First half, it was difficult – the wind was really strange, it was difficult to handle.
“You saw one or two times when the ball stopped in a moment when nobody knew about it. That was difficult for a football-playing side.”
It was in January 2018 – and in the FA Cup again – that Klopp shifted blame for defeat onto broadcasters BT Sport.
After a 3-2 loss at Anfield to West Brom, he said: “What I heard was that the actual extra time in the first half should have been ten minutes. It was only four.
“I heard that television said it’s not longer than four minutes.
“Of course that’s not possible, you can’t cut match time because there is something else to broadcast.
“I don’t know what was on afterwards, maybe the news or something. It was ten minutes and so you need to play ten minutes longer.
“You can’t say, ‘It’s now a little bit too long’.”
April 2018. West Brom again. But this time it is the dry pitch that is at fault.
The German said: “You have to create the best circumstances to help the boys deliver and then we let the home team decide whether they water the pitch or not.
“It is not only for football, it is also dangerous for injuries if the pitch is really dry.
“I wouldn’t have said nothing about that probably if we had won but it is all you see during the game.”
But the one that backfired the most was in the infamous snowgate tactic against Leicester in January 2019.
Anfield groundsmen only cleared snow on the side Liverpool were attacking in the 1-1 Premier League draw.
It was clear Klopp wanted to make the grass in the Leicester penalty area as smooth as possible for the second half.
But despite the cheeky clear-up, he wasn’t happy at the final whistle, saying: “Snow was on the pitch – we couldn’t do anything against that.
“It’s the first time I experienced snow in England, so that’s pretty difficult.
“The team with the ball, with the possession, struggles more with it, that’s clear.
“Because you have to speed up in the final third and that’s pretty difficult.
“I think our counterattacks which were good in the first moment were more defended by the pitch than by the opponent.”
