PREMIER - Liverpool boss Klopp ahead of United clash

Rambling on about Mo Salah's qualities, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp looked back and forward regarding Reds' both latest and upcoming games (including tomorrow one, against Manchester United) and circumstances: 

"I said it a couple of times and it’s the truth: I’m blessed with incredible players that I worked together with during the times. But, no, when the ball went over all the players in that situation [for the first goal against Atletico] and Mo had to already run pretty quick to get it before the sideline and then he turned, it didn’t look for me like a proper goalscoring opportunity. But challenge by challenge it developed into that, so that’s the situation. That’s the difference between a moment where momentum is not on your side and when the momentum is on your side, we all know that. It’s all about the quality of Mo in this moment to do it, to try it and you can imagine how much all the players of Atletico knew about this ability and wanted to defend it, desperately, and still couldn’t do it. Pretty special, pretty special. Yes, I had that; I’m really happy and more than fine with the players I could watch through the times and being quite positive when they got the ball that something special will happen.

Cristiano against Mo on Sunday, as an epochal clash of titans? Yes. You need luck because things can happen, injuries and stuff like this. But I think the professionalism of both is probably the one thing you can compare 100 per cent or say is probably the same. Mo is incredibly professional, he’s really the first in and very, very often the last out of all the players. He is constantly interested in all the different things he can do, he has to do to improve or keep the standard or to improve the standard, all these kind of things. I think he has still a lot to give, 100 per cent.

If you don’t defend well against United, I wouldn’t know a reason why we should get in the coach and go there, to be honest, because the quality they have offensively is absolutely ridiculous. Yes, you’re right, we have to consider that. I really don’t think it’s very likely that you score three goals at United but we never before a game think about scoring more than we do about defending. So, for us, it’s 100 per cent clear that to get in a game, to stay in a game and to win a game you have to defend on your absolute highest level. We have to focus on that but not only, because we have to create as well. We have to play football – very important – we have to be incredibly brave. Brave because each ball you lose against United is a massive threat, it’s a counter-attack threat with the speed they have and all these kind of things. It’s a proper task to play United, but we still want to do it and are looking forward to it because it’s, how we all know, one of the biggest games in the world. It will be a good one".