Salzburg boss to play Liverpool at their own game as he makes victory vow

RB Salzburg boss Jesse Marsch has talked up Liverpool’s qualities – but has warned the reigning European champions his side will be heading to Anfield in search of a victory.

The Austrian champions have made a magnificent start to the season and, much like Liverpool, are five points clear of their rivals at the top of their league.

But comparisons between the two clubs don’t end there, with American Marsch admitting he gears his side up to play in a similar vein to Liverpool and utilises many of Jurgen Klopp’s methods and ideologies as he bids to cut a swath through the group stages of the Champions League with Salzburg.

Much of the talk heading into the game has been the Champions League impact of their star striker Erling Haaland and Marsch insists his side will travel to Anfield believing they can pull off a remarkable result.

“It is a terrible match-up for us in one sense, because all the things we do well, they are better at,” Marsch told The Times. “They like games to feel the same way that we like them to feel, so I think, stylistically, it will be a big challenge for us but we will also make things difficult for them.

“We will have to be incredibly good on the day at what we do. We are certainly going there to win.

“I have never met Jurgen but the relationship he has with his players and his teams, the way his teams play, the passion that he has for the game, the passion that his team has for the game, tactically what he tries to achieve…There are a lot of things that I really respect about how he runs his team.”

Marsch made his name in the MLS with New York Red Bulls before moving to Germany where he worked as a No 2 to Ralf Rangnick at sister club RB Leipzig.

Now in charge in his own right at the third club in their franchise, Salzburg, Marsch has explained the lessons he learnt from Rangnick and of the way he likes to copy the Gegenpress and ‘heavy metal football’ often associated with Klopp’s sides.

“Ralf is a genius in terms of the way he thinks about the game. The first time I met him, he really opened my eyes as to how detailed you can be about this game.

 

 

“I have used that to empower my teams to be a version of what I think our philosophy should be: Gegenpressing. Very aggressive, very direct, very good against the ball.

“I like to try to be a teacher in the way that I coach and that fits well with young players. I like to talk a lot about mentality, about leadership and growth. I also like to create an environment where everyone challenges themselves to get better every single day and I have been amazed at the progress here.

“I know potential is all relative. The potential here, compared to a place like Liverpool, is different, but it is an exciting prospect.”

Meanwhile, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane have plenty of room for improvement after an aspect of their game was called into question by a former Red.

 

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