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Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp lauded Trent Alexander-Arnold for his defending against Gabriel Martinelli and Arsenal on Wednesday.

The Reds ground out a crucial 2-0 win over the Gunners to move to within a point of Premier League leaders Manchester City. Indeed, second-half goals from Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino in quick succession secured the win.

However, Arsenal put in the better and more threatening first-half performance.

Bukayo Saka did not have much luck against Andy Robertson in that battle. However, Martinelli gave Alexander-Arnold problems for most of the game.

The Brazilian got past the England right-back in both halves with pace and impressive dribbling. Ultimately, though, Alexander-Arnold had the last laugh by keeping a clean sheet.

And Klopp was defiant in his defence of the 23-year-old’s defending, which has come in for criticism.

“Both teams had spells of possession where the other team was patient, closing the centre, didn’t want to step out. But we had to, and in the moment when we defended forward in the second half and our eights were jumping,” the manager told Sky Sports.

“The wingers defended the balls in that moment, apart from the diagonal balls to Martinelli which Trent defended incredible.

“Martinelli is such a talented boy and it’s really tricky. If anyone says anything about Trent can’t defend, they should come to me, I will knock them down. Honestly, I cannot hear it anymore. I don’t know what the boy has to do.

“Then we score two fantastic goals and played much more football in the second half. We were back in the right spaces. In the first half, we did not have enough players in between the lines.

“The movement in the front line was not exactly as it should have been and they were not brave enough. That was what we wanted to do in the first half, but we were prepared for a really tough game.”

Klopp added that he “thought it was a goal” when Alexandre Lacazette and Martin Odegaard took advantage of a sloppy back-pass from Thiago Alcantara. However, the manager lauded the “sensational” save from Alisson Becker which kept the score at 0-0.

Klopp also labelled it “pretty special” how Liverpool overcame such adversity to go on and win 2-0.

Klopp on Liverpool title race

The result means Liverpool can now go ahead of Man City with a win over Watford after the international break.

Pressed on how the Reds have closed the points gap from 14 points in January to one in mid-March, Klopp said: “We had a good period since then. It’s what we need, we are one point behind but it’s still the same.

“We have to win football games and then we face City and all the others.

Will Mo Salah join this list of six players to have won the PFA Player of the Year award twice?

“The weekend is the FA Cup and then some of the boys have important games with their national teams.

“Hopefully they come back healthy. Then they have the early kick-off – thank you very much – against Watford. They obviously want to fight for the league, so no game is easy in this incredible league. We have to keep going.”

Indeed, Liverpool switch their focus to the quarter-finals of the FA Cup against Nottingham Forest on Sunday.

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