Liverpool round-up: Klopp reacts to Crystal Palace win; Chelsea striker linked; Draxler enquiry made

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Liverpool secured an important 1-0 win over Crystal Palace to make it their first win over the Eagles at Anfield since 2013. Sadio Mane’s second half strike broke the deadlock and gave his side the lead. The Senegal international celebrated with boss Jurgen Klopp, who told the club website post-match:

“We can talk about defending – it was outstandingly good today… They became a little bit more direct, using Christian Benteke. We really defended this outstandingly good; Raggy Klavan and Matip did really well, and the protection from Joe and Robbo was really good. That’s important. You cannot defend it differently, to be honest… Football playing in the first half could have been better, 100 per cent. I’m really happy that we scored and we created chances in the second half.”

After questions were raised from last week’s draw with Watford, Klopp was clearly keen to praise his defence. With Andrew Robertson making his debut and Joe Gomez and Ragnar Klavan also stepping in, it was a valuable clean sheet for the Reds.

There may be changes further up the field, if Spanish outlet Don Balon are to be believed. They say that if the club do opt to sell Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona this summer, they could make a surprise move for Chelsea striker Diego Costa as the reigning Premier League champions desperately seek to get rid of the forward.

Costa is expected to join Atletico Madrid but they are yet to meet Chelsea’s asking price, with the source claiming that AC Milan and the Reds have also shown an interest. It seems highly speculative for now, but many Liverpool fans would relish the thought of Costa at Anfield given his prolific record in the Premier League.

Another option who could be dependent upon the departure of Coutinho could be Paris Saint-Germain’s Julian Draxler. The Gambling Times say that Liverpool are one Premier League club to have made an enquiry into his availability this summer, alongside Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal.

The German only moved to the Ligue Un side in January and has been impressive since then, but the arrival of Neymar could force him out with Unai Emery not seeing him as crucial to his teams hopes. That could open the door to a move to Merseyside.