Mignolet: Let's put things right in the Premier League
Simon Mignolet has urged Liverpool to focus on 'putting things right' in the Premier League after a week of cup competition disappointment.
The Reds were eliminated from the FA Cup by Wolverhampton Wanderers at Anfield on Saturday, a defeat that came three days after they were knocked out of the EFL Cup at the semi-final stage at the hands of Southampton.
Consequently, Jürgen Klopp’s side will fight on only one front for the remainder of the season - but, as they sit just two points off second place in the top flight, Mignolet insists there is still plenty to play for in 2016-17.
“You never want to go out of any competition - I’ve said it before, at Liverpool Football Club you want to fight for every title,” the goalkeeper told Liverpoolfc.com.
“We had a big chance in the League Cup and the FA Cup, but it’s gone and we can’t pull it back now until next year - and therefore we have to put things right in the Premier League.
“We’ve got a huge chance there and we just have to look forward to it now and try to fight for every three points until the end of the season.”
LFCTV GO: Mignolet eager to 'strike back' after cup disappointment
A run of one win in eight games since the turn of the year has stunted Liverpool’s progress after an excellent first half of the campaign.
But Mignolet feels there is a simple remedy that could prove to be the catalyst the Reds need to go on and finish the season strongly.
“You need a good result, it’s [that] easy, and then you can build on that again,” the Belgium international replied, when asked about his experiences of emerging from a difficult run of form.
“It’s a cliché, but if you get that confidence again then you can continue and make a bit of momentum.
“We only have the Premier League now to look forward to and it’s a bit like when we were challenging for the title a few years ago, that was similar.
“So there’s nothing stopping us now to prepare and focus ourselves on the Premier League, and we can take every game as it comes and prepare ourselves in the best way, and be ready for it every time.”
The Reds returned to training at Melwood yesterday as preparations began in earnest for Tuesday’s clash with Chelsea.
While admitting there was a lingering sense of frustration at the club’s West Derby base following the loss to Wolves, Mignolet explained that the quick turnaround ahead of the Premier League leaders’ visit to Anfield means there is no time to dwell on that result.
“Everybody was disappointed with the fact we were knocked out, but straight away there’s another game to prepare [for] and look forward to on Tuesday,” the No.22 said.
“It’s against Chelsea, which is always going to be a big game anyway, but when you see the position in the league, the way they are playing and the way we played against them at Stamford Bridge - it’s a big game to look forward to.
“If your back’s against the wall, you want to strike back and what better game to do it in than this one?”