Jurgen Klopp told Amazon Prime that Rhys Williams was ‘absolutely incredible’ in defence for Liverpool last night as they left it late to beat Tottenham at Anfield.
The teenager wasn’t the only one who impressed Klopp against their title rivals, as he also stated that Curtis Jones was ‘top, top class’.
It’s a toss of a coin as to who was the better player on the night, but it says something when two of Liverpool’s academy products are fighting it out over the Man of the Match award in such a crucial match.
At first, Klopp shared his thoughts on Williams and how he fared against Harry Kane, who is arguably one of the best strikers in the world, at this moment in time.
“Oh my God,” said Klopp. “Outstanding, outstanding. Come on. Rhys Williams, you can imagine. It’s like the nowadays Alan Shearer he played against [in Kane].
“He’s so smart. Dropping in the right moments. Then in the second half, they only played long balls. They actually avoided Rhys. They played long balls towards the direction of Fabinho and put Harry there, so we had to really fight for this second balls because Rhys is so strong in the air.
“With the ball as well, he played a pass before our first goal. He has the right amount of confidence. So, for a 19-year-old boy, you don’t have to explain how it works. But you have to be confident.
“Apart from that, he just kept it simple. He had super challenges. But interceptions in the centre when they tried to create counter-attacks, he didn’t drop too early, so he won these balls. Absolutely incredible game.”
Whilst Williams won his battles in the air and ensured Tottenham’s forward line didn’t interchange with one another as they would have liked, especially Heung-Min Son and Kane, a certain fearless ball-carrier was dazzling in the final third.
Jones played a part in Liverpool’s opening goal when his burst into the penalty area and one-two with Mo Salah resulted in the left-footed speedster firing home.
Klopp summed up the performance of the attack-minded midfielder, who has now become a key player of Liverpool’s XI.
“And Curtis is Curtis. Our boy. Thank God. Imagine you have to sign him. He’s already here four years and wants to stay, so that’s a top, top class player.”
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