'They're a top side and we'll need to be at our best': Klopp's Spurs assessment
Jürgen Klopp expects Liverpool will be required to ‘play the best football we can play’ when they take on Tottenham Hotspur at Anfield on Sunday.
Spurs journey to Merseyside buoyed by a commanding 5-0 victory over Red Star Belgrade in the Champions League on Tuesday night following a mixed start to 2019-20 by their own high standards.
Klopp is anticipating a testing encounter against Mauricio Pochettino’s men and feels their tally of 12 points after nine Premier League matches is not a true indication of their qualities.
In addition, the manager feels Tottenham could use their defeat in the Champions League final to Liverpool back in June as additional motivation.
Asked whether he expected a tough afternoon against Spurs, Klopp replied. “Yes. And you should not be surprised that I see it like that.
“The situation of Tottenham I cannot judge because I have no idea what happens there and stuff like this. Football is like this, from time to time things don’t work out. But now we saw that game [against Red Star], and it was not the only game – even in the other games, when the results were not really there they had good moments as well.
“It was not that they forget how to play football, that Harry Kane doesn’t know anymore – he showed in that game [against Red Star] how good he can be. Then Son, then Alli, [who has been] often injured [but now] coming back, finding rhythm and all that stuff.
“They are always able to put a proper performance in on the pitch – that is what we have to expect. It’s no problem. On top [of that], we won the Champions League final, we know that. I think we were very respectful in that moment with all the celebrations but we were still the one who were on the other side of that night, so that’s of course another additional motivation to put some things right.
“That’s all clear, but in the end it’s a football game between two really good teams and the situation around will not make a massive difference. We will not be that confident that absolutely nothing can happen to us or whatever, and they will not play like a team with the points tally they have.
“They are a top side in the Premier League and they will be a top side in the whole season in the Premier League – and we have to respect that and play the best football we can play against them.”
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Klopp dismissed suggestions Liverpool’s defeat of Tottenham in the Champions League final had influence on their start to the season – and similarly was not keen to draw comparisons with the Reds’ response to losing the 2018 showpiece to Real Madrid in Kiev.
The manager continued: “I can say nothing about the situation at Tottenham, I don’t know anything about it, so how could I compare it? How could I answer a question about our situation and compare it with the Tottenham situation? I can’t.
“We never thought about it, to be honest. It [the defeat in Kiev] happened, does it mean we don’t want to have it anymore? No, we wanted to have it much more after the experience we made in Kiev. We knew before the season last year that we are one of the few teams – maybe six, seven, eight, nine teams – in the Champions League who can win it because we showed that the year before. That’s why we thought we should try it, that was everything. We didn’t suffer during the season because of the Champions League final – and I don’t think at Tottenham it is like this. We just carried on, that’s how it is.
“I can’t say anything about Tottenham. I said already this morning to another journalist that you [the media] have to constantly judge things from outside, but I know it is not possible. You still do it, but it’s not possible really. You have to be in the situation to understand the situation – and I am not in the Tottenham situation.
“What I saw was a good Tottenham side on Tuesday night, a very good Tottenham side, so that’s what we are going to think about and not why the start of Tottenham is not what you or Tottenham expected.”