Tottenham vs. Liverpool: Jurgen Klopp's Key Comments from Pre-Match Presser

New Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has encouraged his team to showcase a renewed bravery as he gears up for his first game as manager against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.  

The German addressed the assembled media on Thursday for the second time since being appointed Reds boss and touched on a host of topics, including the team, adapting to a new way of life and injured players.

But the main theme from his briefing was his desire to see the Liverpool players enjoying their football again, per James Pearce of the Liverpool Echo:

Indeed, as noted here by Ben Smith of BBC Sport, Klopp has encouraged his squad to showcase a fantasy style of football:

In the early weeks of the season, there was little to love about the Reds’ attacking play. Former boss Brendan Rodgers had always professed a daring style of football, but the patterns in the team’s forward forays were skewed, and as such, Liverpool often looked a little one-dimensional.

Jon Super/Associated Press

Still, Klopp revealed he doesn’t feel as though he needs to make too many major changes to the current setup, per Smith:

"

Jurgen Klopp: "This is not the time to change so much, just to turn the screws a little bit in the right ways."

— Ben Smith (@BenSmithBBC) October 15, 2015"

Despite lifting the spirits of Liverpool fans during his opening week in charge of the football club, Klopp also reiterated it will take time for things to fully take shape under his tutelage, per Liam Prenderville of the Daily Mirror:

"

Some things can change like this [clicks fingers]. But to get tuned as a team takes time. I’m not interested in the problems we might have.

It’s not important how many faults you make in a game, it’s important that nobody remembers after. This is a very important game for us but even more so after the game. Most of fans say ‘we can win the league’ and that is not right at this moment. We want to get back confidence in our own skills and qualities.

"

Jon Super/Associated Press

Klopp is also having to adapt to a new culture and spoke of his bemusement at the media following him around, looking to get photographs as he tries to sort out his private life.

The German claimed it’s odd to see people waiting around for hours in order to get a shot of him going in or out of his house, but he revealed it’s not something that necessarily bothers him, per Pearce:

Klopp also stated he has had to refuse some photographs from supporters, as the amount of snaps that appear on social media paint the picture of a man who is indulging a little too much in the local drinking spots, per Smith:

The Liverpool boss also had updates on some injured players. The first was confirming Joe Gomez has suffered an anterior cruciate ligament problem, although Klopp hailed the defender as “a wonderful young boy,” per Prenderville.

Clive Mason/Getty Images

He then went on to offer a prognosis on the respective recoveries of Christian Benteke and Roberto Firmino, per Prenderville: “Benteke and Firmino are back on the pitch but not training with the team. I hope they will be back with the team next week.”

Bleacher Report’s Sam Tighe took a look at what we should expect to see when Klopp’s Liverpool take to the field for the first time:

Whether Klopp reads the press or not, he’ll be acutely aware there is a lot of expectation on him ahead of Saturday’s clash with Spurs. The German has enchanted supporters in his two media briefings so far, but it’s clear there is an underlying desire within him to succeed with Liverpool and get the Reds’ season back on track.

Tottenham will pose a major test and are a team who play the game in an intense style similar to what Klopp is likely to instil at Liverpool. But if the Reds can continue their excellent recent record against the Londoners, having won the last five in succession against them, then momentum will quickly gather behind this team under a refreshing new regime.