Crunch time for Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool to get season back on track

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The ESPN FC crew discuss Liverpool vs. Huddersfield and the rest of the weekend fixtures.

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Last season a visit from someone like Huddersfield Town would have unnerved Liverpool. It was the kind of game the Reds would slip up in.

There is a sneaky feeling it may be unnerving again, not in the same way like last season but because things don't feel right about this Liverpool team.

It's usually felt playing at home against the team in 11th would be easy but since the Reds are ninth, it might be a lot harder than first thought. Indeed, the Yorkshire side come into the game on the crest of a wave after beating Manchester United 2-1 last Saturday.

Manager David Wagner is probably tired of references to himself as a copy of Jurgen Klopp but showed little sign of it with flattering prematch comments.

Who better to exploit a mentor's weaknesses than his protege, though? The student has an outside chance of becoming the teacher on Saturday.

It hasn't been a good week for the Reds. The search for scapegoats continues. After losing 4-1 to Tottenham last Sunday, Dejan Lovren bore the brunt of the criticism but there's also been chatter about how the defence is protected.

Selective statistics revealed that Liverpool did better defensively without Jordan Henderson in the side during the final months of last season when he was injured. It's the sort of disdain that's plagued the captain ever since he arrived in 2011.

He isn't really a defensive midfielder so it all feels a little unfair. He had to step into some very big shoes when Steven Gerrard went to LA Galaxy, especially as he couldn't dream of being the same kind of player, never mind leader.

He's what Eric Cantona once called Didier Deschamps, a water carrier, but there's nothing wrong with that. Every team needs at least one so long as the rest of the team is functioning properly. Sadly, Liverpool aren't doing particularly well at present so easy targets are sought.

Furnished with the captain's armband, fans expected more from the former Sunderland man, and maybe now James Milner could come back in.

Klopp, however, seems reluctant to use Milner, finding more use for the physical endeavours of Henderson, Emre Can and Georginio Wijnaldum.

This may all be irrelevant by Saturday since Liverpool predominantly need their forwards to find the target more than they've been doing. They've only scored more than a single goal in one of the last seven domestic games.

They do at least create chances -- even against Tottenham where Hugo Loris was in good form. That and the 5-0 defeat at Manchester City are Liverpool's only league losses. Neither fixture was won last season and they were always going to be tough.

Having clutched enough straws for one day, there is no doubt the Reds need to get back to winning ways desperately.

Erratic as results have been since Klopp arrived, what Liverpool want is stability. Wagner may admire the "cinema" of Klopp but something less thrilling wouldn't go amiss right now.

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Liverpool need to bounce back from a heavy defeat at Tottenham last time out.

Win home games and draw away games; a few weeks of that could steer the Reds towards some kind of normality, starting on Saturday.

It's never boring under Klopp but some fans are asking -- somewhat timidly perhaps -- if that's ever enough at Anfield.

It's been seen under previous managers: early progress followed by disappointing results. Ronald Koeman initially improved Everton only to be dumped at the first hint of trouble. Even a league title wasn't enough to save Claudio Ranieri at Leicester. It's a tough old business.

Modern impatience is too often blamed on fans but so many clubs are run by moguls who fear the profit lines becoming severed by failure. They are the biggest factor in whether managers survive or not.

Klopp embodies the passion of Liverpool fans more than any manager since possibly Bill Shankly, who also managed Huddersfield before leaving for Anfield. It would certainly offend them greatly if they believed Klopp's future was even being discussed.

Antipathy towards the owners might only provide a convenient diversion for so long. Sooner or later Liverpool Football Club has to look like what it is; a major player, one of the biggest clubs in football.

Whether they can beat Huddersfield at home or not should not even register as a blip on the radar, yet failing to do so certainly would reverberate.

It's unfair and presumptuous but Klopp will always have to deal with the exaggerated unrest poor runs cause. His last season at Borussia Dortmund was a classic example of how quickly a club's fortunes can deteriorate.

Dealing with that pressure, and what may be a fairly skittish home crowd on Saturday, will be an influential factor in how quickly Liverpool can get the season back on track.

Steven Kelly is one of ESPN FC's Liverpool bloggers. Follow him on Twitter @SteKelly198586.

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Source: espn.co.uk