The Saints are not exactly on cloud nine after a goalless home draw but few teams will keep Liverpool quiet this season.
Southampton midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg has told the club’s official website that Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool are the greatest team he has ever squared up to on a football pitch.
Claude Puel’s side produced a stirring defensive display to keep the league leaders at bay at St Mary’s on Saturday. It was only the third time this season that Liverpool have failed to hit the back of the net in the Premier League and the first since Jose Mourinho parallel parked his double-decker directly in front of the Anfield goal last month.
However, Liverpool produced enough chances to seal another three point haul in one of the league’s toughest away fixtures, and Hojbjerg believes The Reds are the most testing opponent he has ever come up against despite the absence of key creator Adam Lallana.
“I played in Germany against Bayern Munich and Dortmund, I played against Manchester City in the Champions League, but I must say this is maybe the best team I have ever played against,” the Danish playmaker, who enjoyed loan spells with Schalke and Augsburg from parent club Bayern before his summer switch, told southamptonfc.com.
“It’s unbelievable how they move, how they stand, how they work together – it’s like a symphony.
“It’s not only that they move the ball quickly, they also have fast players, and with the ball they are very good one against one.”
The result may have highlighted a rare example of bluntness from a side whose fast-paced attacking approach is unrivalled in the top flight in terms of excitement and effectiveness.
On the flip side, however, Liverpool registered only a second clean sheet of the league season, with Dejan Lovren in particular responding to a chorus of jibes from the home support with another assured performance in the back-line.
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