Klopp spoke on Monday ahead of the Reds’ trip to Aston Villa and understood the place Guardiola’s comments come from, even if he disagrees entirely.
The Reds boss thinks Guardiola was speaking in the head at the moment
On Monday, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp rubbished Pep Guardiola’s assertion that everyone in England wants Liverpool to win the Premier League ahead of Manchester City, suggesting the Citizens boss may have let his emotions get the better of him. Klopp spoke on Monday ahead of the Reds’ trip to Aston Villa and understood the place Guardiola’s comments come from, even if he disagrees entirely. “I live in Liverpool, so yes, here, many people want us to win the league, that’s true!” said Klopp. “But even here, it’s probably only 50 per cent because the other guys were involved in another fight, at least until yesterday.” Klopp thinks Guardiola was speaking in the heat at the moment and concedes the same has happened to him, such as his recent comments about Antonio Conte’s Spurs, which he regrets.
‘Liverpool played Villarreal and City played Real Madrid’
“But after a game like that… I don’t know exactly what kind of situation Pep was in, but after getting knocked out of the Champions League, that’s already difficult enough to take, but then, of course, Liverpool made it to the final,” said Klopp. “So, of course, you have this kind of things. They played Villarreal, and we played Real and all this kind of things, and then you say what you say. And he’s right, on top of it. I was right with fifth place and Tottenham still, and he was right that we’ve won the Premier League only once. I’ve no idea if the whole country is supporting us, that I don’t know. It’s not the feeling I get actually when we go to other places and play there; it’s actually the opposite! But maybe he knows more about that than me.”
According to Pep, everyone in England supports Liverpool
On Sunday, Guardiola made the comments in question while talking to reporters. Perhaps he was trying to instil a siege mentality in his squad as they look to get the title over the line, but he also slipped in a jibe at Liverpool. “Well, one week ago, even when we were in front, nobody was saying City are the champions-elect. Everyone in this country supports Liverpool, the media and everyone,” said Guardiola. “Of course, because Liverpool has an incredible history behind them, in European competitions. Not in the Premier League, because they’ve won one in 30 years. But it’s not a problem at all. The situation is what it is. We have to get nine points, maybe six right now; it depends what is going to happen in the next two games in terms of goal difference.”
This outburst was unexpected, and the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich head coach was pressed on if he really thought Liverpool had the whole country behind them. “Liverpool, alongside Manchester United, are the most important teams in history in terms of titles, legacies, history, dramas, for many, many things. But we are, for the last 10,11,12 years, been there, and I know we are sometimes uncomfortable for other people, but I don’t care. If the people want Liverpool to win more than us, it’s not the issue; it’s normal. Maybe we have more supporters worldwide, for sure, and here in England, people support more Liverpool than us.”