Jurgen Klopp believes Takumi Minamino made a ‘super start’ in his Premier League bow.
Minamino made his domestic bow in Liverpool’s 2-1 win over Wolves on Thursday after the league leaders were forced into a first-half change.
The Japan international replaced an injured Sadio Mane at Molineux in only his second Reds outing since a £7.25 million switch from Red Bull Salzburg.
But Klopp has warned that Minamino may not be handed an automatic start during Sunday’s FA Cup fourth round encounter with Shrewsbury Town.
He said: “With ‘Taki’ we have to think about we what we do exactly now because he played yesterday, obviously much longer than we thought.
“But yesterday night was a big step for him, so come on.
“For nobody yesterday on the pitch was it a game where you have to shine and make your best game, and stuff like this.
“When you come in as a new player, into this kind of battle, and then show up like he did – not with his skills, which he obviously has in different parts of his game – [but] with his mentality and his character.
“He was fighting like crazy and closed gaps, was involved in a lot of situation. It was just a super start, to be honest.
“Is it his 100 percent position? Yes, he can play that but how we said, he’s pretty versatile so he can play different positions.
“For yesterday night it was exactly what he had to do and he did it, so that was much more important than the next game.
“But if he can [play], I have to see how he reacted now to the intensity of that game.
“I still don’t know him long enough in this part, so we have to see. But each game helps, for sure.”