KLOPP WAR CRY
Let’s make it SEVEN Euro titles, roars boss
JURGEN KLOPP has warned Liverpool’s rivals that his players are hungry to conquer Europe for a seventh time.
Liverpool begin their defence of the Champions League by facing Napoli in Italy tonight and, after a flying start to the domestic campaign, Klopp wants a winning start in Europe.
The Liverpool manager insists his team have put their 2-0 win over Tottenham in last year’s final behind them. ‘You cannot imagine how normal it is to carry on after all the celebrations,’ said Klopp.
‘It is so easy if you have the right character. If you go nuts and start taking drugs and drinking and driving 15 cars and leave your missus at home because you are now a Champions League winner, I cannot help you.
‘We are not like that. We want to create more stories to remember in the future, not just this one.’
Captain Jordan Henderson said: ‘We are always hungry for more. Everything is possible.’
EVERYTHING has changed and they know it. As much as Jurgen Klopp insists it is business as usual and a trip to Naples is just another game, the hunters realise they have become the hunted.
‘ We’ve got a big target on our backs now because we are European champions,’ said Trent Alexander- Arnold. ‘ Everyone wants to beat us. We are the team to beat right now, so it’s exciting. We need to try to defend the honour as much as possible and try to retain it if we can.’
There was a time when Liverpool travelled into Europe as a famous name with a rich back story but this year’s Champions League campaign begins with them standing on top of their perch. Plenty will want to knock them off but the challenge of staying there is a source of inspiration.
The events of June 1, when Liverpool beat Tottenham in Madrid, will not be forgotten but Klopp and his players have made it clear the future is what matters. That begins tonight in the foreboding Stadio San Paolo.
‘A lot of the players that we have are world class,’ said Alexander-Arnold. ‘They know what it takes to win things and what it takes to be successful, so I’m pretty sure we’ll be able to embrace that as a
team. I think we have so far this season in the Premier League.
‘Lots of teams will want to come to Anfield to try to beat us, play different ways and we know that’s going to be the test for us. We need to be ready for all types of tests.
‘Being able to keep clean sheets and being able to win away is massively important — especially in the Champions League, when you probably only get one or two chances to beat teams and get results. You are playing against Europe’s elite and it’s about maximising your opportunities.’
The quest to win No 7 starts with the most difficult assignment in Group E, a contest in a stadium that by kick- off will resemble a furnace. They have long memories here and the way in which Liverpool squeezed Carlo Ancelotti’s team out of the group stages last December still rankles.
Klopp’s team lost 1-0 when they visited last October, succumbing to a 90th-minute Lorenzo Insigne goal, but the final score was no reflection of how the game went. Klopp spent most of the contest with his arms spinning like the sails on a windmill, so aghast was he with the performance.
‘We were just not...’ said Klopp, searching for the right words. ‘All the things we do, all the things we tell the boys about intensity and how much we have to invest — Napoli plays a specific style. In the end they were lucky when they scored but we were lucky it was only 1-0.’
Klopp raised a wry smile when asked if he would take a draw here, but the German made his intentions clear. ‘We want to win,’ he said — and so do his team, who now have an array of experiences from last season to draw upon.
‘You had different tests and it was one of them where we’re going to learn from it this season,’ said Alexander-Arnold.
‘We learned from it then pushed on in the last 16. We went to the Allianz and beat Bayern Munich, so we know that we can go and win away games.’
Klopp has concerns over Andrew Robertson, after the left back missed training yesterday due to a knee injury sustained in Saturday’s 3-1 win over Newcastle, but apart from that, they are ready.
‘We are trying to reach the same level as last year,’ said Klopp. ‘We will judge our improvement at the end of the season. For the moment, we will do our best.’
Meanwhile, Celtic are bracing themselves for a bid from Napoli for striker Odsonne Edouard.
The 21-year- old has scored six goals already this season and hit four in two games for France Under 21s earlier this month.
He has drawn comparisons to Nicolas Anelka and clubs around Europe are taking an interest.
Celtic value Edouard at £30million and Napoli are willing to make a substantial offer in January.