A gift of the Gab
JURGEN KLOPP has gazed into his crystal ball – and does not like what he has seen.
Manchester City, who have taken this season by storm, are going to get even better next time around.
And the Liverpool boss admits that is a big worry as he continues with his quest to bring silverware and good times back to Anfield, where the title was last on display 28 long years ago.
Klopp is still delighted to have City’s scalp on his belt – the team to celebrate Premier League success over Pep Guardiola’s men on a memorable January day.
But the German knows that win counts only for pride as Guardiola’s side plot to dominate the Premier League – and possibly Europe – for many years to come.
Even City have needed to get “lucky” at times, though.
Klopp said: “We all know about City with all the quality they have and the mentality of being consistently greedy about winning games so late.
“City are good – and unfortunately they can be even better next year. I have to say that. But we have to keep trying.
“In preparation for the Huddersfield game we watched their game against Manchester City.
“Yes, City had 80 per cent possession but the goal they scored to win 2-1 was a freak goal from Raheem Sterling.
They have had a lot of these late goals in different games.
“That’s good for them and there is no shadow of a doubt that they are where they deserve to be.
“But if you are going to go on a run like them you need that luck – and they have had that this year.
“No team in the top five has had a long run of wins like them. That is because City are really good.
“What the rest of us have to do is to also have good moments, when we are not playing like a dream.”
City’s runaway success this season means the rest are fighting it out for Champions League places.
But even finishing fourth is no mean feat, with Klopp believing that the late, great Bill Shankly would have approved of that aim if he had been around today to check on the progress of one of his many successors.
Klopp added: “If you could bring Bill back into the club now and ask him, ‘Are you happy with fourth?’ he would have seen that this is the only way we can go because he was a fantastic manager.
“You need to do what we are doing to be in a position to win something one day.
“To just want it more desperately than other clubs doesn’t make it more likely to happen. That’s how it is.
“You need to do all your homework and when the time comes, you have to catch it.
Bill would have seen that 100 per cent.
“Unfortunately I never got to know him as a person and that’s really a shame because we are doing the same job.”
Klopp gets the chance to further impress against another top side with today’s visit of Tottenham to Anfield.
The showdown showcases a shoot-out between his own hitman Roberto Firmino and Spurs’ incredible Harry Kane.
Klopp said: “If you see Kane playing, he is all over the pitch. Of all the strikers we have in England they are the most similar – they are everywhere.
“Roberto’s desire to score is big but to be honest he doesn’t really give a sh** over whether he passes the ball or scores himself. It makes no difference and that’s rare.
“Tottenham is another game where we really need to be brave.
“That makes it similar to the City game. If you make a mistake then Tottenham are there and probably score from it.”
Liverpool v Spurs, Today, Sky Main Event, 4.30pm PEP TALK: Klopp chats with Guardiola on the Anfield touchline Oct 2017: Spurs 4 Liverpool
1 Feb 2017: Liverpool 2 Spurs 0 Oct 2016: Liverpool 2 Spurs 1 Aug 2016: Spurs 1 Liverpool
1 Apr 2016: Liverpool 1 Spurs 1
Liverpool – 77 wins Spurs – 48 wins Draws – 42 GABRIEL JESUS will have his spirits lifted by a new Manchester City contract.
The Brazil striker is expected to be sidelined for another month with a knee ligament injury which left him in tears when he was hurt at Crystal Palace on New Year’s Eve.
But City are working on a new deal for Jesus, 20, which will see him double his money from £70,000 a week to around £140k.
The plan is for the contract to be signed before the World Cup so Jesus can concentrate on his expected involvement with Brazil in Russia.
Jesus was a £27million signing from Palmeiras a year ago.
City, meanwhile, will not be looking to sign another left-back in the summer.
First-choice Benjamin Mendy is injured but midfielders Fabian Delph and Oleksandr Zinchenko have successfully covered in that position.
Second-choice right-back Danilo and new £57m record signing Aymeric Laporte, a centre-back, could also be used in that role.