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There was something different about Jurgen Klopp after the defeat to West Ham.

Speaking to the television cameras after, the smile had gone. When asked a difficult question, he did not prefix it with a hearty laugh. The bounce had softened, and was replaced by an agitated shuffle.

He was a manager still coming to terms with the 90 minutes he had just witnessed.

His first words were telling. “Not enough,” he said. “It’s not what I want to see, to be honest,” he later added.

Then, the hammer blow. “This is a day to be angry, not disappointed.”

Klopp has been blockbuster since his arrival on Merseyside, just as anticipated. Every post match interview – whether to TV or the written press – is worth watching. His words amplify a win and soften a defeat.

This wasn’t the same. The only amplification surrounded just how angry he was; the only softening aspect was that he was honest, brutally so as well, so soon after the game. A twisted reassurance that Klopp would not stand for such a performance again.

It was a side of Klopp few Liverpool fans had seen in public. The German has been the great motivator; he dishes out vice-like hugs to players and possesses an abundance of charisma in front of microphones. This was the face of a man who had administered ein haartrockner – the hairdryer – to his players.

There have been signs of it on the touchline, of course. Players such as Christian Benteke, Nathaniel Clyne and Lucas Leiva are just three of the players who have received full force of his criticism on the sidelines. Even when the team has been coasting to victory – a rarity only afforded at the Etihad and St Mary’s this season – Klopp has instructed and encouraged with every kick.

Players, in their interviews, have also spoke of his training ground methods. He isn’t scared to tell them where they are going wrong, is the general consensus. He’s had a lot to tell them over the past month.

Yet, in public, he has largely been ‘good Klopp’. Now, he has shown ‘bad Klopp’. It should concern the players.

Klopp can be ruthless. Not long after joining Liverpool, he spelt that out.

“If a player is full of motivation, concentration, readiness and passion, I am not hard with them. I have open arms and maybe give a last kick,” he said ahead of his first league game at Anfield, against Southampton, in October.

“But if a player doesn’t understand the professional part of his life, it is a little bit of a waste of time.

“I can help if they are very young of course, talk to them and give maybe one, two or three chances.

“But when they are older and have had five chances with other managers, then it is a waste of time.

“I love to be something like a friend of the player, but not their best friend.”

The message is clear. He will not tolerate slackers. After the defeat at Upton Park, he played the numbers game. “If you fight but not at 100%, 95% is not enough. Who wants to see 95%?”

Not Klopp, for sure. As he continues to explore just what he has at his disposal in his new job - an assessment that will, no doubt, take him into the summer and beyond - he wants to see commitment from the players. A full buy-in into what he wants them to do.

His words in East London were those of a man who realised he did not get that from his players on Saturday. Being outjumped by Andy Carroll is forgiveable, but not being outworked.

IN PICS: Liverpool lose to West Ham

In the aftermath of the weekend’s defeat, a list of players went viral online. It was a list of those who left Borussia Dortmund during the German’s first summer at the Bundesliga club.

It wasn’t a true reflection, however. The players sold - nine of them in total - were from 2008, when Klopp had not had a proper amount of time to assess his squad.

Steven Pienaar joined Everton, but he had already agreed the deal during previous manager Thomas Doll’s reign. Striker Mladen Petric moved to Hamburg as a bargaining tool. Three others were already out of contract, including Philipp Degen, who moved to Liverpool.

Klopp on playing through the winter period and its effects on the squad

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More pertinent, perhaps, is what Klopp did the summer after. Having had a year of assessment, the upheaval was not as dramatic as it could have been. Full backs Antonio Rukavina and Markus Brzenska accumulated more Scrabble points than appearances and were moved on, while two others did not have their contracts renewed.

More curious, however, was the departure of Alexander Frei to FC Basel. The Swiss striker was Dortmund’s top league goalscorer with 12, and one of their main players. Despite that, Klopp moved him on. Midfielder Florian Kringe, 29 appearances in the Bundesliga that season, followed him out of the door to Hertha Berlin on loan.

That demonstrates Klopp does not care for status. It also shows he is willing to utilise players and dispose of them if they do not fit into what he wants to achieve.

In that same summer, officially his second at the club, he helped bring in Mats Hummels, Lucas Barrios, Sven Bender and Kevin Grosskruetz. All of those, safe to say, were a sign of Klopp identifying what needs fixing.

The popular past-time around Anfield at the moment is second-guessing. Using history to figure out what Klopp’s next move will be. In reality, there is no telling how his actions at Dortmund could reflect on his time at Liverpool.

His words are the biggest indication, for now. He insists he wants to make this squad work, and that reinforcements will not be needed in January.

Perhaps, but they will be needed eventually.

Klopp is ruthless. A smiling assassin. And once he stops smiling, the squad should take that as a warning shot.