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Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp lashed out at Manchester United great Roy Keane after the former midfielder said the Reds were 'sloppy'.
The defending champions locked horns with Mikel Arteta's Arsenal at Anfield in what was a thrilling encounter, which Liverpool eventually won 3-1. This win helped Liverpool maintain their perfect start to the campaign after wins against Leeds United on the opening day of the campaign and Chelsea.
Klopp begged to differ from the seven-time Premier League winner's assessment of his side's performance and hit back at Keane's comments after their emphatic, well-deserved win in Merseyside.
Klopp brushes away Keane's comments to defend 'exceptional' Liverpool
Reflecting on his side's mighty impressive performance and result against the Gunners, Klopp responded to Keane's comments on Liverpool. The 53-year-old expressed;
"Did I hear right that Mr [Roy] Keane said we had a sloppy performance tonight, because I could hear you already? Did he say that? This was a sloppy performance tonight? Maybe he spoke about another game. It cannot be this game, sorry. That's an incredible description of this game."
The German added,
"This was absolutely exceptional. Nothing was sloppy, absolutely nothing. It was, from the first second, dominant against a team in form, 100 per cent in form. About this game tonight, there is nothing bad to say."
Liverpool were dominant right from the get-go against Arteta's in-form Arsenal and ended the night with a substantially higher possession, number of attempts, and were too much for the visitors to handle. Goals from Sadio Mane, Andy Robertson, and debutant Diogo Jota sealed a memorable victory for the Reds.
Klopp was extremely pleased with his side's display on the night, and rightly so. He continued,
"From the first second dominant against a team in form, 100 per cent in form. You have to be careful like hell and not get hit by the counter attacks. I think 60/70 per cent of all the balls in behind were offside, you just wait a little bit longer for the flag meanwhile, so that's why it feels not great but it was offside."
The Premier League-winning manager ended by showering his rampant Reds with further praise, saying,
"Ali [Alisson] had to make one save, there were two balls in behind, you can't avoid that, you need a goal in these situations. Apart from that, the football we played was absolutely exceptional tonight. So it doesn't help for any other game. Not for Thursday, not for Sunday. Not for nothing."
After Klopp's staunch defence of his side, former Manchester United great Keane explained his comments saying that he did not intend to label their performance as a whole as 'sloppy', but only certain moments.
The 49-year-old also shared Klopp's belief that they had an excellent game on the night, and he explained to the Liverpool manager,
"I think you must have misheard me. I said there were sloppy moments but I think you have been outstanding, I have been giving the club nothing but praise. So I'm not sure you heard me correctly there."
Liverpool currently sit second on the Premier League table on goal difference after their win against Arsenal. They, along with Leicester City and Merseyside rivals Everton, are the only teams to have won their first three fixtures of the 2020/21 league campaign so far.
The Reds' 3-1 win ended Arsenal's perfect start to the season as the Gunners now sit in fifth place with two wins and a loss in three games.
Also read: 'Lucky' Leicester City 'did nothing' in historic 5-2 win against Manchester City, claims Rodri
