Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has insisted he is excited by the prospect of Thursday’s clash with Manchester City.
The Reds lead Pep Guardiola’s side by seven points at the top of the Premier League table, with a possible win for the visitors on Thursday giving them an impressive lead just after the half-way mark of the season.
With the game almost a must-win for City in some quarters, the Reds hold all the advantage going in to the tie.
Speaking ahead of the meeting, Klopp expressed how excited he is by these types of fixtures, claiming the Reds will know exactly what they’re in for at the Etihad.
“I like these games,” Klopp said. “Sometimes if you prepare a football game, watching two or three games of the opponent, you still have no clue what they are doing.
“With Arsenal, City, Chelsea, Tottenham, it’s really different. You know exactly what they are doing. They are still unbelievably difficult to defend [against], but you can see somehow that they have a clear plan.
“That’s, of course, like this with Man City. They are on the top of that. That makes it really challenging, but it makes it exciting as well. I’m always looking forward to these games.
“But it depends on your own situation as well. If we have a full squad, all players available, then the preparation is a joy. The game itself is unbelievably hard work, but that’s how it is.”
The boss, speaking to ESPN Brasil, was further asked whether he was surprised by any of his summer signings, to which he said: “Well, maybe that Ali (Alisson) is such a good football player.
“It was always very clear that he was a very influential player with the ball, but that he’s this good I didn’t see it, honestly — maybe because of a different style Roma played.
“That was a little bit of a surprise, and a very nice surprise.”
Alisson has enjoyed the most successful start of any Liverpool goalkeeper in history, keeping 12 clean-sheets in the Premier League, so far.
Man City vs Liverpool kicks off from the Etihad at 8pm on Thursday and you can keep up with all the drama via LFC Globe’s live match-day coverage.
