DREAD STAR BELGRADE
Shaqiri protected from volatile game in Serbia but Klopp promises: We’re ready for a fight
JURGEN KLOPP wants his Liverpool players to silence a hostile crowd when they run the gauntlet at the Rajko Mitic Stadium tonight.
Klopp’s men take on Red Star in Serbia as they look to stay top of Champions League Group C.
They face a red-hot atmosphere in the Serbian capital with the hosts look for revenge after last month’s 4-0 hammering at Anfield.
And Klopp admitted he left Xherdan Shaqiri (left) out of the squad due to “common sense” to stop his background and World Cup dispute with Serbia becoming a distraction.
The defiant Kop manager said: “I never played here but what
I heard is that it is a very tough place to go. We are from Liverpool, we know how big the influence of atmosphere can be. “The only way I know to cool the atmosphere down is to play really good football. That’s what we have to try. To be ready for a fight, for a big game.” Switzerland international Shaqiri, who was born to Kosovan-albanian parents, celebrated a goal against Serbia at the World Cup with an Albanian “eagle gesture” which caused outrage. Klopp said of his decision to leave out the player: “I’m absolutely not aware of any security issues.
“It was common sense to make the decision. We come here wanting to play football. We are in Serbia, we respect that 100 per cent.”