Liverpool missed out on the chance to go top of the Premier League after a goalless draw with Merseyside neighbours Everton on Sunday.
The Reds would have been sitting top of the pile if they had beaten the Toffees at Goodison Park, but the draw sees Manchester City still top, one point clear of Jurgen Klopp’s outfit.
However, the Merseyside derby, which was far from a classic on the pitch, did throw up one moment of comedy gold after its conclusion.
Jurgen Klopp was not happy with just a point in a game they should have breezed through and not only did he blame it on Mohamed Salah’s poor finishing in his post match interview, but also the wind.
Speaking to Sky Sports after Sunday’s clash, Klopp said: “I know people don’t like when I say that but, the wind was coming from all directions and did not help any football.”
You’d expect this kind of excuse to be used by a Sunday League manager, but not one of England’s most decorated clubs.
Quite the character, this is not the first time Klopp has blamed the wind as the reason for a poor result. In fact, used the same excuse following Liverpool’s FA Cup exit against Wolves earlier this season.
The German is clearly not a stranger to unusual excuses, as he also accused Manchester City of growing their grass out deliberately in order to stop Liverpool’s fast flowing football in their 2-1 defeat at the Etihad earlier in the campaign.
Dry grass has also been a victim to Jurgen’s wrath when, in 2017, Liverpool failed to beat Southampton at Anfield. Klopp said after that result: “I know nobody wants to hear it, but I’m brave enough to say the grass was to dry.”
The worst of Klopp’s excuses came when he accused BT Sport of dictating the maximum amount of added time that the referee could issue at the end of their FA Cup defeat to West Brom in January 2018.
It could be argued that the Liverpool boss has a point when it comes to the wind and other factors that could cause results to go against the club but at the same, he should not be using them as excuses as often and as publicly as he has been.
However, with players being paid thousands of pounds a week to perform at the very pinnacle of the beautiful game, surely a bit of a wind should not affect their performances. After all, the opposition are playing in the same conditions.
All the silly excuses a side, could Liverpool be throwing away yet another chance of winning England’s most glamorous trophy.
The last time Liverpool come close to winning their first ever Premier League crown was in the 2013/14, when Steven Gerrard’s infamous slip at Anfield led to a 2-0 to Chelsea before they threw away a five point lead at the top of the league with just three games remaining, gifting the title to Manchester City instead.
With Klopp’s side showing early signs of a repeat of that monumental collapse five years ago, can Liverpool recover to finally secure their name on England’s top trophy? Will Klopp be sacked if they don’t? And what will his excuse be if that happens?
Excuses, slips and long grass aside, Liverpool and Manchester City are perfectly in place to ensure there is an exciting title race to come, which should go down to the wire.