Augsburg vs Liverpool match report: Jurgen Klopp frustrated as Liverpool fail to spark on his Germany return

From the railway lines that link Munich Hauptbahnhof to Augsburg, the dazzling neon lights of the Allianz Arena in the distance are a reminder that Liverpool are not really where they wish to be.

Performances like this, half an hour up the tracks in provincial Bavaria, disclose the reality of how much progress is needed under Jürgen Klopp before a return to the grandest courts of European football becomes a possibility.The best chance last night fell to Tobias Werner, a balding 30-year-old midfielder who might win an Attilio Lombardo look-a-like competition. Werner has been with Augsburg since 2008 when they finished the season as the 11th best team in the German second division. Better players were selected ahead of him when Augsburg lost at home to Bayern Munich at the weekend, a result that leaves them just a point above the relegation zone, their campaign suffering from the challenge of being in Europe for the first time.

Augsburg’s greenness was contextualised by the presence of Stephen Monaghan, a Liverpool supporter attending his 100th European away game having started on his travels in 1976 when Halil Altintop, Augsburg’s oldest player last night, was six years away from being born.

Klopp had warned the Liverpool squad that the tie represented “the biggest game” in Augsburg’s history.

The sense of occasion was, indeed, palpable, with fans of both clubs beginning to gather outside the city’s Rathaus at midday. Inside the stadium, in the moments before kick-off, You’ll Never Walk Alone was projected from the public-address system, and when Klopp’s name was read out in a special welcome, but for a few comedy jeers, the home terrace cheered.

Klopp then emerged from the tunnel and a pack of more than 20 photographers scurried to his dugout, encircling him. As he did for his first game as Liverpool manager, he marked his return to Germany by wearing a suit and tie.

He had been able to choose the same team in successive matches for the first time in his 31 in charge, the decision reinforcing the acknowledgement earlier this week that now injuries have cleared up, a more consistent selection might subsequently lead to consistent results.

Yet here, in the first half especially, both teams were scruffy and unlovable: surrendering possession with regularity, shooting in hope rather than conviction and clearing in an unnecessarily panicked fashion.

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Augsburg’s flow was interrupted by the enforced substitution of the Raúl Bobadilla, the implausibly proportioned centre forward described by Klopp as someone who requires a navigation system to get around, someone, indeed, with prior experience of scoring against Liverpool having done so with Swiss club Young Boys in 2012.

For a long time, Liverpool were unrecognisable from the team that dismantled Aston Villa on Sunday. Their flow was interrupted because Augsburg seemed to have a better understanding of where to be in the midfield as well as their own limitations. Jordan Henderson and James Milner are not Steven Gerrard, though it did not stop them attempting Steven Gerrard passes. Altintop pressed on Emre Can, squeezing the space he needs to be effective. Two of his three Bundesliga goals for Bayer Leverkusen had come against Augsburg two years ago and although Klopp had commented that he felt better prepared to face this opponent than any of those he has met in the Premier League so far, Can’s inability to start moves with purpose made it impossible for Roberto Firmino and Philippe Coutinho to get involved from dangerous positions.

None of this helped Daniel Sturridge, of course, who was playing in only his third European game for Liverpool. Sturridge was serviced better after the break when the combination between Nathaniel Clyne and Milner began to dominate from the right. He should have scored when Milner fed him and as he shaped to shoot. It was not to be his night, though, and when Klopp chose to take him off it was Divock Origi and not Christian Benteke brought on as the replacement.

It did not prove to be Liverpool’s night. Although there was a chance of it being Augsburg’s when substitute Ji Dong-Won’s low volley struck a post.