Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp doesn’t apparently need advice from Manchester United club legend Gary Neville. Liverpool have not won a single trophy during the Klopp era, and haven’t won a league title since 1990. They also haven’t claimed a trophy of any sort since 2012.
However, under Klopp they have finished runners-up in both main European competitions, losing out to a Spanish team in the final both times (2016 Europa, losing to Sevilla and 2018 Champions League, losing to Real Madrid).
Neville toldย ย The Timesย that the Reds should focus on winning the league, and not go all out in trying to win the UCL this season. Klopp, a hard core fiery competitor, obviously dismissed this idea when it was brought up to him during his weekly news conference today.
Here’s the video of the session, held in advance of the weekend’s marquee match-up, between his side and Tottenham Hotspur. The Neville talk begins around the 16:20 mark:
Liverpool Starting XI Prediction: go to this link
Tottenham Hotspur Starting XI Prediction: go to this link
Injury Report, Match Preview: go to this link
“How should that work? What do we do? We don’t play Champions League or what?” Klopp said his news conference on Friday.
“Gary should come over and tell me exactly how that would work. How do you prepare a game and not focus on it? You bring your kids in the Champions League? That would be funny!”
“I don’t know what he means with that, to be honest. We have to play football. A lot of people watch our games when we play Champions League and that’s our job that we do the best we can do in all these games.”
“That’s what we try. I don’t know exactly what it means but to focus on one competition can only be if maybe you are already out of the competition nearly.”
“If it’s late in the season that you see you have a chance to do that or do this and all that stuff.
“Last year, for example, we had no chance to focus on one competition because we had to qualify for the Champions League and I don’t think that even Gary Neville would have said: ‘Quarterfinals of the Champions League, let City win.’ It doesn’t work like this.”
“I don’t want to be too critical because I don’t know exactly how he said it but sitting in an office and talking about football is completely different to doing the job, to be honest. But it’s an opinion.”
Klopp is known for his intensity, so of course this idea of Neville’s is going to go over like a lead ballon.
Liverpool commence their European campaign Tuesday when they host Ligue 1 juggernaut Paris Saint-Germain in group stage play. Saturday begins a stretch that will see the Reds play seven times between tomorrow and October 7.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net and TheBank.News, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, is currently a regular contributor to SB Nation, WGN CLTV and Chicago Now.
Follow him on Twitter, Instagram, Sound Cloud and YouTube. The content of his cat’s Instagram account is unquestionably superior to any and all of his.
