We’re ready to suffer to deny Messi’s Euro ambition says Klopp
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp accepts his players will have to suffer in the Nou Camp if they are to deny Lionel Messi the opportunity to fulfil his pre-season “threat” to win the Champions League.
In August, the Argentina international, in his first public address as captain, told a packed stadium before a friendly against Boca Juniors that he and the players had made it their ambition to win the trophy for a sixth time.
They had been stung by watching Real Madrid win their third consecutive title – against Klopp’s side – and 13th in all, and Messi said: “Last season was really good as we did the double but we all felt bad about how it went in the Champions League. We promise that this season we will do all we can to bring that beautiful trophy back to the Camp Nou.”
Klopp said he viewed that as fighting talk and, with the two teams now pitted together in a semi-final first leg, Messi and his team-mates will be put to the test.
“Messi said before the start of the season that they wanted to bring back this cup. That sounded already like a threat to me. Now we are here, we want to go to the final as well,” said the Reds boss, who, when asked to rate Messi, said he was his No 1.
“We won’t be perfect tomorrow, we will make mistakes, we will suffer, 100 per cent. We can’t be completely free to play our game. I know people made out that we became better in the last couple of years and Barcelona are not the same without Xavi or Iniesta, but we have been here for two years, they have been here for 20 years.
“I would say a draw would not be the worst result in the world, not that we go for it but it would be OK. So many people came to Barcelona and had a plan and, in the end, they got a proper knock. But there were a few who could really cause problems: we saw the game against Real Sociedad and they did well, Levante did well a couple of days ago.”
Klopp’s record in Spain is poor, with three draws and five defeats, but that does not mean he has not had success against Spanish sides. With Borussia Dortmund, he beat Real Madrid on the way to the final in 2013. That had personal benefits for Klopp as he recalled a holiday in Ibiza.
“Because I beat Real Madrid a couple of times, one day I got a full table in Ibiza,” he said. “The restaurant was full but they said, ‘You are Jurgen Klopp, you beat Real Madrid, you’d better take it’.”
Klopp was also reminded of comments he made about Pep Guardiola’s all-conquering Barcelona side in 2013, which his hosts viewed as derogatory. Nothing could be further from the truth, argued the German who six years ago said: “If Barcelona’s team of the last four years had been the first one that I saw play when I was four, I would have played tennis instead.”
By way of explanation Klopp said: “What I wanted to say was, what I most like in football is that both teams have pretty much the same chance.
“If the other team is much better, you can bring them on to your level with tactics. For me, when Pep was here, they were so good and so dominant, then that is not a competition. That’s why I said that.
“I like the opportunity in football to use tactics, not only defensive tactics but just to make it an exciting game. That’s what I thought and what I think still.”
Meanwhile, Roberto Firmino, pictured, appears to be winning his fight to be fit to face Barcelona. The Brazil forward, who missed last Friday’s Premier League victory over Huddersfield with a small muscle tear, was included in Jurgen Klopp’s 23-man squad to travel to the Nou Camp.
Firmino featured in training as the Reds allowed media cameras into their Melwood complex for their final preparations before flying to Spain yesterday afternoon.
Manager Klopp said: “We all knew from the beginning it would be a race. We don’t have to make a decision today because there’s no game today, we can wait. It looked good so far, but I have until tomorrow to make that decision.”
Midfielder Fabinho has been passed fit after he was forced to miss the 5-0 thrashing of Huddersfield following a blow to the head in the previous game against Cardiff.
Rumours that forward Mohamed Salah had suffered an injury scare proved wide of the mark as the Egyptian played a full part in yesterday’s session. For the biggest moments, there is always Lionel Messi. The 31-year-old Argentine has been the key to Barcelona’s success ever since he made his debut but, more and more this season, he has been rested.
Today won’t be one of those days, because that is when Barcelona face Liverpool in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final.
“Messi is the centerpiece of our success,” Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde said. “Obviously, since he arrived the club has won numerous titles. If there’s a player above everyone else, it’s him. He sets our style and his level of competitiveness improves everyone.”
A few days ago, Messi, pictured below, won the Spanish league trophy for the 10th time in his 15 seasons with the Catalan club. He scored the decisive goal – yet another one – that allowed the Camp Nou side to clinch their eighth league title in 11 seasons.
He has also helped the team advance to a fifth straight Copa del Rey final and reach thechampionsleaguesemifinals for the first time in four seasons.
Barcelona know they will need the very best of Messi for tonight’s home leg, so the management have worked hard to manage his playing time and make sure he will be in top form.
Valverde has been using Messi only at key moments in recent games, saving him for the decisive stages of the Champions League – which the club have not won since 2015. Barcelona have been eliminated at the quarterfinal stage of the main European competition for last three years. Valverde has often left Messi on the bench in recent La Liga matches, sending him on if the team were struggling. That was the case last weekend in the match against Levante, which Barcelona needed to win to secure the title. Messi came off the bench at half-time LIVERPOOL
Appearances ............................ 2 Goals ................................................ 0 Not since the last 16 of the 2006-07 competition have the two clubs met, meaning Messi – who was just 19 at the time – has had to wait for his chance to show Liverpool what he can do. He played the full duration of both games but was kept at bay as Liverpool won 2-1 at the Nou Camp and progressed on away goals after a 1-0 loss at home.
CHELSEA
Appearances ......................... 10 Goals ................................................. 3
ARSENAL
Appearances ............................ 6 Goals ................................................. 9
MANCHESTER CITY
Appearances ............................ 6 Goals ................................................. 6
MANCHESTER UNITED
Appearances ............................ 6 Goals ................................................. 4
TOTTENHAM
Appearances ............................ 2 Goals ................................................. 2
and scored the winning goal in the 62nd minute.
Messi also didn’t start the previous league match, against Alaves, entering the fray with about 30 minutes left to help the team hold on to a 2-0 win.
The Argentina forward has historically had little rest time in his career with Barcelona, being one of the players with the most minutes played nearly every season. He hasn’t missed a lot of time because of injuries, with his latest long-term absence coming last year when he was sidelined for about three weeks because of a broken forearm.
Valverde began managing Messi’s playing time more aggressively this season as the team reached the final stretch. Messi had been playing non-stop as Barcelona played a difficult period that included games against Real Madrid and French club Lyon in the last 16 of the Champions League. Valverde then left him out for a league match at Villarreal, bringing him off the bench midway through the second half and seeing him help the team erase a late two-goal deficit in a 4-4 draw.
Messi played two consecutive decisive matches after that, against Atletico Madrid in the league and Manchester United in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals, but then didn’t make the squad for the 0-0 draw at bottom side Huesca.
Fully rested, Messi will certainly be playing from the start tonight.
“We won’t be perfect, we will make mistakes, we will suffer, 100 per cent. We can’t be free to play our game... Iwouldsayadraw would not be the worst result in the world, not that we’ll go for it”
JURGEN KLOPP