Klopp: Defensive frailties cannot be fixed by one defender

Cape Town - Jurgen Klopp has insisted Liverpool's defensive frailties cannot be solved by signing one defender after shoddy defending saw the Reds draw 2-2 with Sevilla in their Champions League tie on Wednesday.

Liverpool hit back with goals from Roberto Firmino and Mo Salah after poor defending let in Wissam Ben Yedder for the opener after just five minutes.

The Reds then squandered numerous chances to seal the tie, including a first-half penalty from Firmino that hit the post, before they were punished for their profligacy in front of goal when Joaquin Correa grabbed an equaliser on 72 minutes.

Speaking after the match, Klopp said: "The first goal starts in a situation in the midfield when we can shoot the ball easily away.

"Emre [Can] is a little bit late in the situation, that's the first moment I realise something will happen. Until then, it was a nothing situation. That's a press ball, in the half-space on the left-hand side, and in the end, I think it was through the legs of Dejan, I don't know exactly how it was.

"That's not, in the end, perfectly defended but I have to see it again. It's, of course, concentration, it's nothing else in this situation.

Klopp then rejected the suggestion that one single player could solve all Liverpool’s defensive problems.

"I know here, you're always looking for this thing, so the defence was always something we were talking about - [we] didn't sign this or that and all that stuff.

"But, if these problems would have been sorted with one player, you could imagine we would put all our money in and say: 'Come on, let's do this.'

"It's not about this, it's kind of this being dominant and losing a little bit the grip on the game. That's all space for improvement for all of us.

"We need to learn to be dominant and not to give easy goals away and the first one was, for sure, not necessary and too easy.

"The second, I have absolutely no clue how they came through that, to be honest, I have to see that again. It's not a general defending problem but we have to improve, 100 percent."