Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has sights set on leapfrogging Manchester United after ruling out title challenge
The Reds blew a two-goal lead against Arsenal on Friday at the Emirates to draw their eighth match of the Premier League season
JURGEN KLOPP has set his sights on Jose Mourinho.
The Liverpool manager wrote off challenging for the title after racking up EIGHT draws before Christmas.
Manchester City’s form also means finishing top is no longer an aim — so finishing second is now the target.
And being best of the rest will knock bitter rivals Manchester United and their boss Mourinho off their second-placed spot.
Klopp said: “It looks like we could be second, third or fourth this year.
“That will be not the dream but a fantastic situation — and that’s what we’re working on.
“We are on our way and we have to keep the team together and involve other players.
“That’s a job for the future. This year, I don’t think anybody expect Man City and maybe Man United can think too much about how they can win the league. We have to qualify for the Champions League, we have to finish as high as possible.”
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Klopp is interested in signing £70million centre-back Virgil van Dijk from Southampton — but even that will not eradicate the defensive errors that have blighted Liverpool’s season.
Against Arsenal on Friday night they were two goals ahead and ended up needing to salvage a point in a 3-3 thriller.
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Klopp added: “If we find players who don’t make individual mistakes, we will change everything.
“It’s difficult to scout players who have never made an individual mistake in their life.
“But it’s not about that — we have to defend better as a team, 100 per cent.”
Klopp has called on his players to learn from their mistakes.
He explained: “If you make one mistake, you learn from it.
“At home against Sevilla, we missed the ball. Tottenham, we missed the ball.
“With mistakes like this you have to learn from them. To avoid them completely is impossible. Lots of my players in this squad are young enough to learn.
“That is what they will do. But to stop it just like that will be difficult.”
Midfielder James Milner says his team-mates need to stop trying to score every time they get the ball.
He said: “Attacking football has defined the team this season but you have to know when to rein it in a bit rather than score every time we get it.
“It’s a natural instinct but it is about the result at the end of the day. It is about knowing when to take that five or ten minutes in a game.
“It doesn’t mean we have to change our style of play but for those few minutes, shut up shop. Build the attacks a bit slower and take the sting out of the game.
“We’ve got the hard bit — being good enough to pull teams apart. The easy part is the bit that we’re not doing well.”
Jordan Henderson has been ruled out of Tuesday’s clash with Swansea after limping off at the Emirates.