Jurgen Klopp gives his honest opinion on how Thiago fared on Liverpool debut

Jurgen Klopp has hailed Thiago Alcantara for his “top” performance as the Spaniard made his debut in Liverpool’s 2-0 win over Chelsea.

Thiago was introduced at half-time with captain Jordan Henderson suffering from a tight hip and immediately set about breaking a Premier League record.

The 29-year-old’s passing was sublime and his control of the midfield gave Liverpool fans an exciting glimpse of what they can expect in games to come

Thiago’s performance was not entirely flawless, however, as he caught Timo Werner’s ankle in the box to concede a penalty – though Alisson went on to save Jorginho’s effort from the spot.

Nonetheless, Klopp heaped praise on his new signing for his fitness and technical ability as he assessed his performance after the match.

The Liverpool boss said: “[Thiago was] top. [He had] top, top timing, I would say in a game like this.

“He trained, he had eight days off, then he played for Spain and trained for Munich.

“He is fit so that is not the main problem and he just has to get used to our system.

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“[Chelsea] played a different system so you need to get used to your mates next to you.

“But when they went a man down they played a perfect game, we decided to bring him on and I liked the game a lot.

“Defensively it was tricky for him because we set it up differently but when he had the ball, that’s him, he wants to pass the ball.”

Thiago’s introduction at half-time came five minutes before Sadio Mane opened the scoring with a header from Roberto Firmino’s cross.

The Senegal forward wasted little time adding a second as he punished Kepa Arrizabalaga for a mistake to finish from close range four minutes later.

Liverpool’s next two matches see them face Lincoln City in the Carabao Cup third round before hosting Arsenal in the Premier League.

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