Juergen Klopp... ‘no enemies in football’.Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp believes their first European meeting with Manchester United is “the mother of all games”.
The German did little to play down the highly-anticipated clash with their arch-rivals in the last 16 of the Europa League but, despite the animosity which has existed between the two clubs, he insists United are not the enemy.
He even had some sympathy for counterpart Louis van Gaal after the criticism the Dutchman has faced this season.
“I don’t believe in enemies in football I believe in real opponents,” said Klopp. “I have absolutely no problem with Louis van Gaal but the last thing I want is for him to win.
“You can play your best friends but if (they are) in the wrong shirt for 95 minutes you can forget everything, all the common experiences in your life.
“Games like this are the mother of all football games.”
Van Gaal is under scrutiny again as, after four successive wins in three different competitions, defeat at West Brom cast the spotlight back on him.
Former Dortmund boss Klopp faced the Dutchman when he was in charge at Bayern Munich and believes he has been unfairly treated in England.
“United lost their last game but a few weeks ago there was a lot of pressure on LVG and Manchester United and they handled it well and came through,” added Klopp.
“If you listened to all the things you (the media) said and wrote you could think there were big problems and three games later they were close to the Champions League.
“We’ve played a lot of times against each other: he’s one of the best managers in the world.
“I’m really pleased he could change the situation a little bit (at United) because with his long, successful career it is not okay at the end your colleagues give him, or the world, the feeling he had absolutely no idea about football because that is not true, he has proved it 20,000 times or more.”
Van Gaal has a 100 per cent record against Liverpool in his four matches since taking over but Klopp does not think that will have any bearing on tonight.
“I was here for only one of these games,” he said.
“We lost and maybe we didn’t play our absolute best but we played good enough to win the game but in the end it was one moment what decided the game.
“I don’t think this is the only thing I need to know.
“We are not too far away from Manchester United; they have won the last four but that means nothing.
“It would mean more if they were much better and had much more quality but it is pretty close. I would say we are both in a good moment.”
Injury situation
Meanwhile, Manchester United are expecting a host of injured players to make their returns this month but will not rush them back into the first-team, Van Gaal said ahead of today’s last-16 Europa League tie against Liverpool.
Despite having nine players currently out, including captain Wayne Rooney and defender Phil Jones, United won four games in a row prior to their shock Premier League defeat at West Bromwich Albion on Sunday.
“(Antonio) Valencia is coming back, Basti (Bastian Schweinsteiger) is coming back, a lot of players shall come back in March,” Van Gaal told reporters.
“... it is hard to see whether they can cope with the rhythm of the match... Basti, for example, has only one training session under his belt.
“Valencia is much more closer to being on the bench, but not to play a match.”
Winning Europe’s second-tier club tournament appears to be both clubs’ best chance of qualifying for the Champions League next season and Van Gaal has labelled the tie a must-win.
“You have to win – there is no difference (with it being a Cup competition). United and Liverpool is always a big game. It’s historical and even bigger now because both teams are fighting for a Champions League place,” Van Gaal said.
Last 16 (first legs)
Playing today
Basel vs Sevilla - 19.00
B. Dortmund vs Tottenham - 19.00
Fenerbahce vs Braga - 19.00
S. Donetsk vs Anderlecht - 19.00
Ath. Bilbao vs Valencia - 21.05
Liverpool vs Man. United - 21.05
Sparta Prague vs Lazio - 21.05
Villarreal vs B. Leverkusen - 21.05
Second legs –March 17