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Jurgen Klopp is yet to decide teams for Club World Cup and League Cup

Jurgen Klopp has said he is still undecided as to how he will divide his squad after it was confirmed that his side will play two games in two days in December.

Following the announcement that the his side will play their Carabao Cup quarter final at Aston Villa just a day before a Club World Cup match in Doha, Klopp said he will need time to think over team selections ahead of the fixture pile-up.

"We will see. The final decision about the team line-ups has not been made,” he revealed to BT Sport following his side’s 2-1 Champions League win over Genk. “It is in Qatar so it's not that we can play here and then there the next day. It's not to be decided now.

“All the other alternatives were just no good for us. Now we have a little bit of time to think it through."

The Reds are required to participate in the FIFA tournament following their victory over Tottenham Hotspur in Madrid last season and reached the last eight of the EFL Cup after a dramatic penalty shootout win over Arsenal last week.

The reigning European Champions continued their good form in this year’s competition with a narrow win over the Belgian champions at Anfield.

Goals from Georginio Wijnaldum and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain helped the Reds move to the top of Group E in the Champions League - a point ahead of Napoli with two games to play and the Italians travelling to Merseyside next.

Liverpool's Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain celebrates scoring his side's second goal of the game against Genk . (Photo by  Martin Rickett/EMPICS/PA Images via Getty Images)
Liverpool's Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain celebrates scoring against Genk . (Credit: Getty Images)

However, Klopp’s team were made to work for their victory after Mbwana Samatta had cancelled out their opener with a powerful header for the Belgians just before the break.

"We didn't finish our situations in the way we could have done,” he lamented. “We had a lot of chances, a lot of shots, not too many shots on target and some really big chances that we usually use. We didn't do that and it kept the game open. That one set-piece they had, gave them a lot of energy.

"The goal they scored, it was a good goal from them, we could defend better. It kept them alive, we had to work a lot.

“We scored a wonderful goal through Ox [Oxlade-Chamberlain] early again, but again, we don't finish the situation and it keeps them in the game.

“The good thing is that the players all came through but you saw after a while it gets hard to get that rhythm and at the end of the game it was not there. We got a little bit of trouble but not really. The plan was to win the game and we did it, job done.”

Wijnaldum puts Liverpool in front
Wijnaldum puts Liverpool in front. (Credit: Getty Images)

Having conceded in all but three matches in all competitions this season, Klopp admitted his side will also need to work harder defensively going forward.

"It’s not what we want,” he adcded. “But all the goals we have conceded have been completely different. It's not just about defending but about being 100% spot on in these situations. We were not spot on, we know that and we need to work on that.

Looking ahead, the Reds face Premier League title rivals Manchester City in a huge top of the table clash at the weekend and Klopp expects his team to be ready for the visit of Pep Guardiola’s team.

"Tomorrow will be a nice recovery day for everybody and then from Thursday we prepare for [Manchester] City."

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