Sami Hyypia: Reds must stick together and trust themselves
Sami Hyypia has urged Liverpool’s players to remain united and trust in themselves before they bid to kick-start their year against Arsenal on Saturday.
The Reds’ largely inauspicious start to 2017 continued on Monday night when they slipped to a 3-1 defeat to Leicester City - a result that means they have won only two of their 12 matches in all competitions since January 1.
Arsenal visit Anfield this week in what could prove to be a pivotal contest in the battle to finish in the Premier League’s top four, and former Liverpool captain Hyypia believes it is essential for the club’s current crop to believe in their own ability in order to come through their difficult spell.
“It’s very important to stick together and trust the way you are playing. You have to help each other on the pitch even more,” the Finn told Liverpoolfc.com on day one of LFC World in Hong Kong.
“I’ve been in the situation where games are not going your way many times and [sometimes people] look to blame somebody else, other than themselves. I think you have to look at yourself first and do your job properly and also help others around you.
“Pointing fingers at people around, at everybody else, doesn’t take you further, it only makes things more complicated. Everyone has to have the belief and the trust that we are doing the right things and I think that’s the way to go forward.”
Sami talks to us at the Clearwater Bay Golf and Country Club in Hong Kong
Hyypia added that a drop-off in form at some point over the course of a campaign is something most sides have to endure, and feels that a back-to-basics approach could aid the Reds’ recovery.
“Every team goes through a bad patch in the season, but it’s important that you sort things out quickly and maybe concentrate on the simple things that you have to do right rather than doing things [that are] too complicated,” he said.
Liverpool’s record against other members of the Premier League’s top six this season makes for comforting reading before Arsenal come to town, with Jürgen Klopp’s side boasting an unbeaten record in eight matches against their direct rivals this season.
Of course, the Reds defeated the Gunners 4-3 at the Emirates Stadium in a thrilling encounter on the opening day of 2016-17, and Hyypia offered his view on why Klopp’s men appear to thrive in this type of fixture.
“The so-called ‘smaller’ teams play a different way as an opponent to the ‘bigger’ teams. The bigger teams trust their skill and their quality to go forward and they are not sitting back always, trying to hit on the counter, and I think when a team is defending with nine men around their own box it’s very difficult to break [down],” the ex-centre-back explained.
“Then, when you are not on top of your game, you can have a frustrating game. You have to put your chances away and then the other team has to open up. If you don’t do it then a counter-attack or a set-piece or something can happen and you concede a goal, then you are trailing 1-0 which makes it even more difficult.
“But the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea, [Manchester] United, they play their own game against all teams - it doesn’t matter if it’s a big team or a little bit of a smaller team against them. I think that helps us to play better against the bigger teams.”
For a full run-down of what happened on day one of LFC World in Hong Kong, click here.