Liverpool boss Klopp urges Premier League to protect players
Liverpool manager, Jurgen Klopp said “it’s like we’re going 10 to 15 years backwards” as he called on the Premier League to protect players by rethinking rule changes.
Klopp was unhappy with a number of challenges during Saturday’s 2-0 win over Burnley.
Before the new season, clubs were told officials would not penalise “trivial things” to allow games to flow better.
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Klopp told BT Sport: “If you like that sort of thing, watch wrestling.”
Referee Mike Dean did not issue any yellow cards at a sold-out Anfield on Saturday, despite Burnley conceding 12 free-kicks.
Klopp was frustrated with challenges from Ashley Barnes and Chris Wood and left questioning if the rule changes are having a negative impact on the game.
“We always had to be ready for a proper fight and we were today,” said Klopp.
“You saw these challenges with [Ashley] Barnes and [Chris] Wood and Virgil [van Dijk] and Joel [Matip]. I’m not 100% if officials are going in the right direction with these decisions.
“It’s like we’re going 10 to 15 years backwards. The rules are like they are, but you cannot defend these situations.
“The message now is let the game flow, but nobody exactly knows what that means.
‘This is the football we want to see but it’s just too dangerous.”
An 18th-minute Diogo Jota header and an impressive second-half Sadio Mane strike ensured Liverpool made it two Premier League wins from two, and Klopp is thankful his players emerged unscathed.
“I like decisions that favour the offensive team, that’s fine,” said the German.
“But we have to stick to protecting the players. We cannot deny that.
“In a lot of moments, we played a brilliant game without scoring. In all the other moments, we had to fight incredibly hard. We won it and nobody got injured.”