Jurgen Klopp has admitted that he had to take Diogo Jota off against Real Madrid, as the forward was ‘clearly’ struggling.
Jota was virtually invisible during his 57 minutes of the Santiago Bernabeu pitch. Aside from one mis-timed volley when in a decent position, the 26-year-old may as well have not been there.
Having seen Jota begin the second-half with a series of sloppy fouls, Klopp admitted in his post-match press conference that he knew he had to take the Portuguese off.
“For Diogo, it was clear that he should not play now extremely long because he is still coming back from a long, long injury,” said the manager.
“You could see the game got harder and harder for him, little fouls there, one, two, three. He is not a player who is usually fouling so perhaps he comes a bit late. So, no risk with him and we have options on the bench.”
Jota continues downward trend
Obviously, injury has hugely affected Jota’s campaign this year. A problem in pre-season was quickly followed up with a much longer issue in mid-October. He has never been fully able to get going.
But still, his record of zero goals in 16 games is a real worry. It isn’t good enough.
As a result, there have been tentative suggestions that Liverpool are willing to cash in on Jota this summer. With Newcastle reportedly interested, a fee of around £60m has been mooted.
For many Reds supporters, that will be a non-starter. Jota has more than enough credit in the bank following two excellent first seasons at Anfield.
But judging by his recent displays, perhaps it’s something they should genuinely consider. In need of raising funds, £60m would represent a tidy little profit on the £45m they paid for him in 2020. Going by his recent displays, there’s a worry that Diogo isn’t the same player after his injury – which was described as being a ‘strange’ one.
Last night’s ineffective display only furthered that notion. It should still be in mind that he’s only eight games in from a four-month lay-off. But Liverpool can’t afford passengers right now. We need our lethal No.20 back.
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