Many dismissed it as a lame excuse when Jurgen Klopp lamented the dryness of the Anfield pitch after Liverpool were held to a dour stalemate by Southampton in May 2017.



“I know nobody wants to hear it but I am brave enough to say it. The pitch was really dry,” he declared. “We gave it all the water we had but after 15 minutes it was really dry again with the wind. You could see it… a lot of passes you thought ‘why are they playing this?’ But it was difficult.



“In a possession game you need to have the best circumstances, if possible, in a home game especially, but we couldn’t have this. That’s nobody’s fault. It is not what I want. To be successful you have to have a fortress at home.”



Klopp felt that Liverpool’s ageing playing surface was holding them back. It was too slow and inhibited their attacking play.



Fenway Sports Group (FSG) took action, sanctioning a multi-million...