00:00How do you reflect on that? When Dominic scores it obviously looks so good and then you end up not only losing the game but losing him for a match as well. What are you feeling after that?
00:15Yeah, a feeling of anger and a feeling of disappointment. Of course because in the first half City were the better team on the pitch without creating that many big chances except for the one from Haaland in the first minute.
00:31But they played easier with the ball but the improvement we've made since three or four months ago was I think visible for everyone.
00:40In the second half our standards went up, in terms of intensity we were pressing them all over the place and that is the biggest improvement we've made in the last three or four months.
00:53The whole team is now able, at the highest level against a team that's probably one of the best teams, maybe their best team or one of the best teams in England, in ball possession.
01:04To do so well off the ball is a big improvement and the fantastic second half was expecting more than being 1-0 up but we weren't and then two goals conceded.
01:18What did you think of the decision? Everyone thought we'd just let the goal stand but what's your decision?
01:32Yeah, when you asked me what do you think about the decision I thought, what do you mean?
01:36Do you mean the disallowed goal at City? The header from us, do you mean the penalty they got in the away game against us?
01:41Do you mean the clear red card and Mo Salah in the second half? Do you mean the penalty they got in the second half?
01:48Do you mean this decision?
01:50Only over two games and the ones that follow Liverpool know how many decisions of this I can come up with in all the other games as well.
01:58Only in these two games, all the big decisions that could have gone in some situation to a 50-50 or yeah, some people say left, some people say right.
02:07I can live with the fact, although I don't like it, that the referee follows the rulebook and Dominic makes a foul on Haaland in that last situation.
02:18That is a clear shirt pull and he was through to goal, so he would have scored. So that's a red card.
02:26And I think the Sunderland manager is really happy that he gives the red card. So that's the rulebook and you follow the rulebook.
02:32And if you follow the rulebook and you have a clear shirt pull from Guayi and Mo Salah, who's for eight years scoring that ball every single time,
02:41100 out of 100 times he scores the goal, a bit exaggerated, and that is not a red card, then there is more of my frustration.
02:50But I can live with the red card from Guayi. If you like football, you say, leave it as it is, it's a goal, it's good for them, it's good for everyone.
02:58But if you're the Sunderland manager, you prefer to see a red card. And that's the rule, and follow the rules is all we ask.
03:04And did you think it was a penalty? On the one in Manchester or this one? No, here.
03:12Oh, OK. If it would have happened on the other side, I would have asked for a penalty. If I would have got it, I'm not sure.
03:22So there is contact, we cannot debate that. The ball is out of play, we cannot debate that when he makes the foul.
03:29He cannot never get the ball anymore. But for me, this is a clear decision.
03:35I would prefer to talk about the holding of ball because that is so obvious that all the attention should go to that.
03:42But this is one where I think, but I'm not sure if the referee doesn't give a penalty and he was waiting, waiting, waiting and listening to his linesman,
03:49at least that's what I thought, and then he gave it, then the VAR will never interfere again.
03:53But what if he wouldn't have given it? Would then the VAR have interfered? That's what we will never know.
03:58But I think my main frustration is in the shirtpool of Mo Salah at 0-0, clear and open, 1v1 to the goalkeeper.
04:11That's the fourth time this season that you conceded after the 90th minute,
04:17and you conceded a winner after the 90th minute, which is the joint-most in the Premier League.
04:21What do you put that down to? Is it just that ball of court or is it something more than why it's a super-sumulate goal?
04:28That's every time a different goal, of course.
04:32Just before that moment when they scored the 2-1, we went with Curtis in a very promising situation.
04:43Mo went deep. Curtis is such a special and good player on the ball, so there was a fair chance that he would have,
04:50maybe eight or ten times, with Gwei he had a great interception, great signing of them,
04:55had a great interception in that moment.
04:57And that is how the margins between these teams are and were today.
05:03But I've said many times, the next step for us is not to rely or depend on that pass or another decision.
05:16And we are getting there. If you compare this to three or four months ago, you see so much improvement.
05:22But the issue is that you don't see this improvement in the league table.
05:26And that is always the most important reflection of where you are.
05:33Lewis?
05:35You had to think Joe or Jeremy back before soon and with Dom, not the right-back now out.
05:41Yeah, no, Jeremy for sure not. We knew this when he got injured, that was a few weeks.
05:47To be honest, I don't expect Joe to be back as well Wednesday, but you never know.
05:54But then he's back after being out for three weeks. Would you play him then?
06:00You say no, but you don't have to make the decision, I have to make the decision.
06:06So, yeah, let's see what decision we make.
06:11We have probably other players that can play that position as well.
06:14And Dom, again, played a very good game in that position.
06:17But unfortunately he's unavailable for Wednesday.
06:20You said that in the second half, the press in particular, what did you put that down to?
06:27Did you change anything at half-time?
06:30No, we did not change that much in ball position ever in our off-the-ball work.
06:38But I think in the first half you could see moments where we were really close
06:42of winning the ball back in a high press, which didn't happen yet.
06:48But you also know if you can keep bringing that same energy,
06:51both teams maybe get a little bit tired.
06:53Off the ball is not nice to be a bit tired, but on the ball as well
06:57you can start making passes that are not as clear and good as they were in the first half with City.
07:03And then momentum is coming, fans are behind the team, you get a lot of energy.
07:09And I think that's what we saw in the second half.
07:12Very good physical, mental performance from my players.
Comments