Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has four issues to fix to finish top four

Liverpool have had a disappointing start to the season as Jurgen Klopp’s side are languishing in ninth place, below both Fulham and Brighton after back-to-back Premier League defeats to Nottingham Forest and Leeds. The Reds are eight points off fourth-placed Newcastle, and as the battle for top four heats up, Klopp’s side still have clear issues they need to fix. Liverpool have four games left before the World Cup, including two in the league, and Express Sport has looked at four problems that need fixing for Klopp’s side to turn their season around.In Liverpool’s previous 16 league games, they have conceded the first goal on 12 occasions, with five of those goals coming within the first four minutes. The early goals are forcing the Reds to mount a comeback and score twice in each game in order to get three points, and while the attack is not firing on all cylinders it is becoming a difficult issue to overcome.Whether it due to is a lack of focus or intensity remains to be seen, but Liverpool need to cut out conceding the first goal in the majority of games as they already need to overcome an eight-point gap between them and fourth-placed Newcastle in order to qualify for the Champions League, should they not win this year’s competition.JUST IN: Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta provides Bukayo Saka injury update Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has had a disappointing start to the season. (Image: GETTY)Former Liverpool midfielder Graeme Souness has been just one of several pundits to question the Reds’ trademark intense midfield after the 2-1 defeat to Leeds. ‘Liverpool are a country mile from what they were in the last few years,’ Souness told Sky Sports.’They don’t play with the same intensity. I think in many instances tonight, Leeds were more than a match for what Liverpool have been doing to teams for years. Liverpool used to bully teams, their midfield bullied teams. And now they’re being bullied.’Liverpool have moved away from the 4-3-3 shape that has brought them success under Klopp following injuries to Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota, and also to accommodate new striker Darwin Nunez, and it has forced them to have fewer bodies in midfield and Thiago and Fabinho have often been overrun. Liverpool’s midfield looked dismayed as they lost to Leeds. (Image: GETTY)Injuries have highlighted a lack of quality in depth in the Liverpool squad this season, with several key players spending lengthy periods of the campaign on the sidelines. Harvey Elliott and Fabio Carvalho, as talented as they are and full of potential, have been relied upon all season to play in big games for Klopp.Just four players came into the club in the summer window, including Calvin Ramsay and Arthur Melo who have barely featured, and investing in one or two key areas in January could provide a big boost to the squad.DON’T MISS…Man Utd and Liverpool learn eye-watering price to sign Moises CaicedoLiverpool ace Virgil van Dijk finally sees remarkable record endedFour worst Liverpool players as Klopp’s side fall to Leeds loss Harvey Elliott and Fabio Carvalho in action for Liverpool against Nottingham Forest. (Image: GETTY)