“It was bad. Really bad.”
The visitors were outplayed from start to finish at the Amex Stadium, producing an alarmingly disjointed, toothless and lopsided display that leaves them far off the pace of the Premier League.
Brentford’s win at home to Bournemouth on Saturday night saw the Reds fall to ninth in the table, 16 points behind league leaders Arsenal having played one game more.
Speaking to BBC Sport after the 3-0 South Coast loss, Klopp said: “I can’t remember a worse game. Honestly, I can’t.
“Brighton played very well. They deserved to win. They were a very organized team against a not very organized team.
“Of course we are very worried. How not to be after a game like this?”
The worst season under Klopp?
After 18 league games, Liverpool have scored fewer goals, conceded more, won fewer points and have a worse goal difference than at this stage of any previous full top-flight campaign under Klopp, who was appointed manager in October 2015.
They have dropped 26 points in the league this season, four more than in the entire 2021-22 campaign.
Klopp fielded a 4-3-1-2 formation on Saturday, with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain operating behind the front two of Mohamed Salah and Cody Gakpo, but there was an imbalance in their game that Brighton were too keen to exploit.
Liverpool fans will argue, with some justification, that injuries to Virgil van Dijk, Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota and several others have had a major impact, but recent defensive frailties cannot be explained.
Careless mistakes were the cause of the 3-1 defeat at Brentford two weeks ago, and the 2-2 draw at home to Wolves in the third round of the FA Cup last Saturday.
Brighton’s opener in particular was entirely self-inflicted, with Alexis Mac Allister intercepting Joel Matip’s loose pass in the build-up to Solly March’s 46th-minute effort.
When asked what was wrong, Captain Jordan Henderson simply replied, “Everything.
“It’s been wrong for a little while now. Everyone knows that. I’ll take responsibility and the guys will too. We have to try to make things right.
“We lack confidence. The energy level is low. We have to keep fighting and hopefully we can change that as soon as possible.”
“It is a work of reconstruction”
Klopp responded angrily when asked at Friday’s pre-match press conference why he hadn’t brought in any additional reinforcements yet during the January transfer window, telling reporters that “the market transfers is not the solution for us”.
While Liverpool continue to be linked with Moises Caicedo – who gave another midfield masterclass for Brighton on Saturday – and England international Jude Bellingham, Gakpo remains their only signing since the World Cup in Qatar.
Former England and Arsenal defender Martin Keown told Final Score that “rebuild work” was needed to lift Liverpool out of their current slump.
“I think Jurgen Klopp is a magnificent manager – we know that,” he said. “It just looks a bit old in midfield.
“If Liverpool can’t rush you – they were the best in Europe last year – then they aren’t the same anymore. They just don’t have the same energy.”
Klopp, however, believes better organization remains key to improving the Reds’ fortunes.
“The same players have played outstanding football games but if things are not organized properly it can look like this,” he said.
“Today is a really low point. From this game we can’t really take anything away except things that didn’t work out.
“Improving today shouldn’t be too difficult.”
