Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp did not think of a weekend match in the Premier League against Manchester United ahead of the match against Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday (20/2).
Liverpool face a tight schedule that is quite heavy this week. In addition to entertaining Bayern in the middle of the week, the Reds will meet Man United this weekend. Klopp insists he is not thinking about the match against the Red Devils because Mohamed Salah and his friends will still serve the defending Bundesliga champions in the first match of the Champions League last 16.
“Match by match, you can’t think of it any other way. If you ask Manchester United against Chelsea [in the FA Cup match] do they think of us, I don’t think so,” Klopp told ESPN.
“We have a heavy schedule in the months of the season. There is not one month that makes you think, ‘God is only against this team’. The match is always heavy and we must be ready,” continued the former Mainz and Borussia Dortmund coach.
Klopp demands his squad play 100 percent focus when entertaining Bayern for tickets to the Champions League quarter-finals. Despite targeting good results in European club competition, Klopp is aware of having to defend Liverpool’s chances of winning the domestic league title for the first time since 1990.
“For all Liverpool fans, obviously the Premier League title, we know that. But now we are playing in the Champions League and they all hope we can do the best. That’s what we will do,” Klopp said.
“The only thing we can do is give all our abilities and play the passionate football, football that we hope for when we come to Anfield,” he added.
This will be a pretty emotional match for Juergen Klopp. Because, he will face two former squad at Borussia Dortmund, Robert Lewandowski and Mats Hummels. In addition, Liverpool winger Xherdan Shaqiri will also face the former club that Bayern Munich have defended. This is a battle of two European elite clubs that have history in the Champions League. Liverpool and Bayern have won the competition five times.
Here’s the interesting facts Liverpool vs Munich
1. Liverpool and Bayern have only met five times in the Champions League with a balanced record. Both of them packed one victory and the other three matches ended in a draw.
2. The first time the Liverpool v Bayern duel took place in the 1971/72 Cup Winners Cup semifinals. After a 0-0 draw at Anfield, Liverpool lost 1-3 in Germany.
3. The last meeting of the two teams took place in the 2001 European Super Cup. At that time, Liverpool defeated Bayern 3-2.
4. Liverpool has a record of 14 wins and two defeats against German teams in two-leg matches.
5. While Bayern recorded a record of 10 wins and five defeats when against English teams in the two-leg party.
6. Bayern have always qualified in the last five matches in a two-leg format when facing English teams. Chelsea became the last team to get rid of Bayern in the Champions League quarter-finals 2004/05.
7. Liverpool have also recorded regular wins in their last four matches against German teams in two-leg matches. Bayer Leverkusen became the last team to successfully get rid of Liverpool in the 2001/02 quarter-final Champions League.
