Liverpool take on Man Utd in the Premier League this weekend, and Dejan Lovren has stoked the fire with an indirect dig at Jose Mourinho.
While the Croatian international hasn’t entirely mocked the Red Devils, he has commented on their approach and style of play in the previous meeting between the two sides at Old Trafford.
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Mourinho and his side have been criticised on more than one occasion this season for their perceived negative tactics, as they have emphasised keeping things at the back against the top teams as opposed to showing too much courage to go out and try and win the game.
Given he’s got a decent record against his direct rivals this season, it appears to be a tactic that is paying off, but Lovren has criticised when he perceives as negative tactics, and insisted that Liverpool will be playing to win on Saturday.
“Last time here, they defend really deep. So let’s see what happens now,” he said, as reported by The Mirror. “They need the points, definitely.
“For them it will be maybe a point good but for us, we never play for a point. We are there, we will give our best. We will play like we play every day — attacking football. Let’s enjoy.”
The stakes are high in this one, as the two old rivals are currently battling it out for second place in the Premier League table, with Man Utd currently just two points ahead.
In turn, whether that influences Mourinho’s plan remains to be seen, but given the form that the Liverpool front three of Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah have been in so far this season, he won’t be the only manager likely to be concerned with how to deal with them with a defensive approach.
Salah in particular has caught the eye, scoring 32 goals in 39 games, and so while Lovren may be mocking Mourinho’s defensive mentality, the Portuguese tactician will need to make sure his backline is organised otherwise they could come unstuck.