Pep Lijnders has described the in-form Diogo Jota as having “fire in each vein” ahead of Liverpool's Champions League clash against Ajax at Anfield.
Jota's goal in the Reds' 1-1 draw at Brighton on Saturday was his ninth in 14 games for Liverpool, with five of them coming in the Premier League and four in the Champions League.
The Portuguese international has also netted in five of his seven appearances at Anfield and Liverpool assistant boss Lijnders believes Jota's mentality has helped him to make such an impressive start to his career on Merseyside, but says the role Jurgen Klopp has played shouldn't go unnoticed either.
“Jurgen had an important role because the way he speaks with the players about our style and our identity is so clear and strong, he has the magic to make these things look simpler,” Lijnders told the Liverpool v Ajax official matchday programme.
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“Diogo comes from a good tactical culture that makes it more easy, but we can never forget that it still takes time for the body to adapt. That’s why we are careful – he is adapting to a new style and new ideas. But first and foremost, if you come into a great team, things become easier most of the time.
“He has these natural abilities that were already very important to our game idea. This is what made us want him so much.
“When a new player comes, it’s always how the player adapts to the team, its mentality, and how the team understands the player. But you can see that he has fire in each vein when he plays, so the adaptation process has been very natural.”
Lijnders, who in the same interview speaks in detail about Mohamed Salah and explains why he already thinks the Premier League title race will go down to the last weekend of the season, believes the Reds are in for another tough assignment against Ajax.
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Liverpool won 1-0 in the Johan Cruyff Arena when the sides met in October and Lijnders feels the similar mindset of both sides will lead to an absorbing Anfield encounter.
“It’s always tight when both teams don’t accept the word ‘retreat,’ he said. “That’s the one word that doesn’t exist in our dictionaries.
“For us it doesn’t matter who we play against, home or away – we will press them high and aggressively and we will attack and attack them again.
“Our style is to attack with and without the ball. We realise that the game is played with one ball – our ball – and we try to steal it back wherever we can on the pitch and use it to attack the opponent.
“It’s the same kind of approach as Ajax. That’s why it will be highly interesting. Who can take control over the game will automatically push the other team in its weakness.”
Order the programme here to read more, including Jurgen Klopp and Jordan Henderson's must-read notes: https://reachsportshop.com/matchday_programme/liverpool-v-ajax-01-12-2020/
