"You saw it in a lot of the play" - Peter Crouch explains key reason for Liverpool's shock loss at Bournemouth

Former Liverpool striker Peter Crouch identified complacency as the main reason behind the Reds' shock 1-0 away defeat against bottom-placed Bournemouth. Phillip Billings scored the only goal of the match at the Vitality Stadium in their Premier League clash on March 11.

Jurgen Klopp's side entered the contest on the back of a thumping 7-0 home win against Manchester United on March 5. Crouch, however, claimed that the Anfield outfit's players were complacent in their clash against the Cherries.

He said (via Mirror):

“It’s easy to get up for a Manchester United game, It’s a lot harder to come to Bournemouth, bottom of the league, for the early kick-off. 100 per cent [it was] complacency, you saw it in a lot of the play. Some of the passes were sloppy, some of the defending was really lax – trying to play offside, doing the lazy things, not going with runners."

He further explained that Liverpool didn't create many chances and switched off in defense as well. Crouch said:

“We saw it with the goal – people switching off, not tracking back with the same intensity that they had last week. Top teams don’t play like that. Also a top, top team, when they come to Bournemouth, you expect them to have 20 shots on goal, have some cleared off the line, some luck here and there. But in all honesty Bournemouth deserved it today."

He concluded:

“The best chances for Liverpool today were some set pieces, Van Dijk headers, there was nothing really clear cut. I think [Diogo] Jota came on and made a difference, but other than that there were no clear-cut chances.”

The Reds are fifth in the Premier League with 42 points on the board, having played 26 matches.

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Steve McManaman slammed Liverpool for lack of urgency

Former Liverpool winger Steve McManaman was unhappy with Klopp's side's lack of urgency during the Premier League away clash against Bournemouth.

He said:

“It certainly looked like that [they weren’t up for the challenge], I thought they were terrible today, Contrasting fortunes for both teams. Everything Liverpool did well last week when they won at Anfield was completely the opposite today. They were lethargic, they were slow, they moved the ball sideways so many times, there was no urgency to go forwards."

Mohamed Salah missed a second-half penalty. Despite having 70% possession of the ball, the Reds were unable to find the back of the net.