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Liverpool news: Jurgen Klopp makes Man City admission ahead of Premier League showdown
JURGEN KLOPP will not underestimate Manchester City when they face his Liverpool side at Anfield on Sunday.
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The two teams meet for their first time this season and with the Reds looking to bounce back from their midweek loss to Napoli in the Champions League
Klopp was full of praise for his Premier League rival as he called City “the biggest force in world football”.
“They are so strong,” said Klopp.
“This team together with the club, the money they have and this manager is exceptional.
We have to start it new, different game, different opponent, different challenge
“It is a good match, a good combination. It makes them the biggest force at the moment together with PSG in world football.
“We have to battle and fight with them for different things in the league and maybe in the Champions League at one point if it comes to that again. That is it.”
Liverpool know how to beat City having ended their unbeaten Premier League run last season with a 4-3 win over Pep Guardiola’s side at Anfield in January.
They then dumped them out of the Champions League at the quarter-final stage with victories at Anfield and the Etihad Stadium.
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It helped improve Klopp’s record against Guardiola improve even further with eight wins, one draw and five defeats for Klopp in their 14 meetings.
That added to Liverpool’s attacking threat which Guardiola admitted he was “scared” about in City’s All or Nothing documentary and you wonder if Klopp is the kryptonite for the all-conquering Spaniard.
But the Liverpool manager would not entertain talk that he is somehow “in the head” of his rival when he was shown a clip of the documentary on Friday as they prepare to go toe-to-toe again on Sunday.
“I have no clue what they think about us,” he said. “I am not interested. I didn’t watch that documentary, I heard about it and now I saw it.
“I don’t think about stuff like this. They want to respond. They want to strike back. I don’t think they think a lot about our quality. They respect it like we respect their quality.”
Liverpool come into this meeting on the back of their worst display of the season so far after their 1-0 defeat by Napoli in the Champions League on Wednesday.
“We have to stay cool,” said Klopp. “It’s not that you lose it overnight.
“We have to start it new, different game, different opponent, different challenge.
“Unfortunately an even bigger challenge but that’s all. My faith in this team is so big, and we want to show a reaction.
“I didn’t want to lose at Napoli but if you ask me which is the best preparation, mood-wise, it’s that we lose a game. We felt it and we don’t want to have that feeling again.”
Another win for Klopp and Liverpool over Guardiola and City would put them right back on track and back to the top of the table.
But while last season’s victories were special nights at Anfield and another win on Sunday would just be as welcome, Klopp will inevitably be judged on whether he ends the Reds’ long wait for a league title.
While there is no doubt that head-to-head Liverpool can overcome what City offer, now they have to show they can topple “the biggest force in world football” over the course of a season.
“That is how life is,” Klopp added.