Jurgen Klopp will be speaking live to the media to preview Saturday’s trip to Manchester City at 1.30pm on Friday.
With the top-of-the-table clash coming in the dreaded – and much criticised – 12.30pm kick-off slot, the Reds will be aiming for victory at a ground they haven’t won at in the Premier League since the early days of Klopp’s reign, way back in November 2015.
With Klopp a vocal critic of the timing of Saturday’s game – and the fact that this will be the Reds’ third early kick-off immediately after the international break – it will be interesting to see what the Liverpool manager adds on the topic.
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Here is what could be on the agenda when Klopp speaks on Friday lunchtime.
Everton’s points deduction
The big football story of the past week has been the Premier League’s unprecedented decision to dock Everton 10 points for breaching their Profit and Sustainability Rules.
Every manager across the division will likely be asked about the situation before the weekend’s fixtures and Klopp will be no different. Given the fact that such a punishment has been meted out to the Reds’ local rivals, it will add an extra layer of intrigue as to what the manager will say and Klopp has rarely played the straight bat to questions during his time on Merseyside.
While Klopp will no doubt have some sympathy for counterpart Sean Dyche, who now finds his team plunged back into the relegation zone through no fault of his own, the Reds manager’s words will be poured over intently by both sets of supporters across the city and beyond.
Sympathy, however, might be in short supply at Anfield in general given the local rivalry and more so the fact that owners Fenway Sports Group have always kept Liverpool run on a tight, risk-averse ship when it comes to spending, even if that has been a policy that has frustrated large swathes of the fanbase at plenty of junctures during transfer windows. Either way, Klopp’s words will make for fascinating listening.
The Man City question?
Bleeding into questions over Everton’s situation might just be the long-term one that continues to engulf Saturday’s opponents Man City.
The current champions of Europe and England have as many as 115 charges laid at their door with regards to Financial Fair Play and that issue has drifted back into focus this week following Everton’s shock sanction.
City’s charges relate to the seasons of 2009/10 to 2017/18 inclusive and the allegations are denied, it should be stressed. However, with no resolution seemingly near and with Everton’s plight the talk of football, might Klopp be asked about Man City’s own issue? It is, after all, a case that impacts Liverpool more than most other clubs around the top flight.
Injury latest
Liverpool were given two boosts this week over their left-back position as Kostas Tsimikas declared that his absence for Greece in midweek was not injury related.
The defender simply sat out Greece’s meeting with France to avoid a yellow card that would keep him out of March’s European Championships play-offs so he is cleared for participation at the weekend.
That update came on the heels of a positive message from Andy Robertson regarding his own comeback. The Scotland captain underwent surgery last month for a shoulder injury picked up against Spain while on duty for his country and the progress being made should hearten supporters, even if he is nowhere near ready for a return.
Elsewhere, an update on Stefan Bajcetic might be forthcoming although Thiago Alcantara will remain sidelined for the weekend’s visit to the Etihad. Hopefully that is the extent of the injury updates.
South American quartet are pivotal
Also expected will be an update on Liverpool’s South American quartet of Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz, Alexis Mac Allister and Alisson Becker.
Liverpool have made special provisions to ensure all four are returned without haste following their respective fixtures for Uruguay, Colombia, Argentina and Brazil, with a private jet chartered to get all four back to Merseyside in good time ahead of Saturday’s first-versus-second clash.
It’s been a good week or two for Nunez and Diaz, in particular, with five goals between them during the break ensuring they should at least head to Manchester with their confidence levels sky high.
Nunez registered twice against Bolivia earlier this week after netting in a 2-0 win against World Cup winners Argentina while Diaz provided the feel-good story of the international round when his double against Brazil saw his watching father break down with emotion in the crowd following his recent ordeal as a hostage in his homeland.
The form and availability of those two in particular will be important subplots while a further update will be given on Mac Allister given his own exertions over the last fortnight.
City rivalry
Klopp’s press conferences for games with City have been appointment viewing in recent times.
“I’m not sure we have to be best friends with other clubs, to be honest,” he said in the wake of last season’s 1-0 win over City at Anfield when his pre-match comments about their rivals’ spending power was viewed dimly at the Etihad.
“I don’t think anybody wants to be best friends with us. I never heard about that at least. It’s completely normal competition. Again, it started here with a question, I answered it and all the rest was made of it.
“I know what I thought when I said it, and I thought I put it all into perspective and said how much I respect everything that they’re doing. Then obviously it was still not right for some!”
Both clubs have admirably taken steps to ease the simmering tensions in the last 12 months or so but there is little dispute that neither fanbases is, to quote Klopp “best friends” with each other.
While the admiration and respect between the two managers and the ability of their respective squads is absolute, Liverpool and Man City have not made good bedfellows in the last five years. Again, it will be engrossing to hear Klopp talk on the subject.
Kick-off slot
But perhaps the subplot which could prove to be the most explosive at the AXA Training Centre on Friday will be his latest response to the 12.30pm kick-off.
No team has come close to the amount of times the Reds have been made to play in that slot immediately after the international break during Klopp’s now eight-year reign and what is surely the most difficult away-day of the campaign was made that bit tougher by the scheduling.
Klopp has criticised the timing a handful of times already this term, saying after the 3-0 win against Brentford earlier this month: “OK, no-one can say at the moment but how can you put a game like this on Saturday at 12.30pm?
“Honestly, the people making the decisions, they cannot feel football, it is just not possible. And if that is the moment where the world pays the most to see a football game then nobody has to tell us. I don’t know if that is the case, I really don’t.”
Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
