'This is the standout game for both teams' – Klopp on Merseyside derby
Jürgen Klopp insists Liverpool must be prepared to face a determined Everton side in a 'standout' fixture on the calendar.
Anfield will host the 234th encounter between the two sides on Wednesday night in the first meeting of the 2019-20 campaign.
Despite Marco Silva's team currently sitting 17th in the Premier League standings, Klopp has warned that the Blues travel across Stanley Park with a point to prove.
Read on below as the boss previewed the showdown during a press conference at Melwood on Tuesday afternoon...
On Everton and their recent form...
For me, the most important game for the analysis was the last one against Leicester and it was really close and they were good. They changed system and that looked really well, really well settled after maybe one week training with it. It looked good. It caused Leicester a lot of problems, they had their chances. When it was 1-1 I think Moise Kean had that really smart finish, which unfortunate for Everton didn't go in the goal. But that was an open game in a lot of moments against a dominant Leicester side, but that was good. In all other situations that would be a positive sign – I'm not sure how Everton is seeing that, I don't know – but anyway we expect Everton at their best. This is the standout game for both teams during the season and both teams always showed that and respected that. We have to make sure that we are ready.
On Everton's current position in the table...
The table tells the full truth at the end of the season but not in the early stages, that's how it is. If you go through the Everton squad then you would say, 'Wow, that's a really good squad' and nobody denies that. Why it's not clicking 100 per cent so far? I don't know really. A few really difficult injuries, especially the Gomes one and Delph was now injured but he is maybe back, a very important player for them as well. If you have not a positive run, it mustn't even be a negative run, these kind of things can always happen. A lot of pressure there, obviously Everton is an ambitious club, rightly so. If it doesn't go the right way then the pressure increases pretty quick, that's the situation. They are not the only ones in this situation. This league is really difficult, really difficult for all of us. We have to respect that and that's what we do.
On whether last season's win over Everton at Anfield laid the foundations for the Reds' resilience...
We didn't see it like that, to be honest. Sometimes, yes, a win can give you a boost for the next couple of weeks, but it was just a moment. In this game, a few really great things happened. I remember Joe Gomez saved the ball from the line in an incredible situation. Everton was good that night obviously, it was an intense game, so there were a few winning moments. Then finally a very strange goal of course and my celebration, which I said sorry for because I had to and it was right – it will not happen again, not even in a derby. But in that moment it was a pretty cool moment. But for us obviously it's long ago, pretty much a year and for them as well, so nothing to do with the game tomorrow night. There are enough stories around this game and we have to be really focused on the important parts of the game and they are all on the pitch and not around.
On complacency potentially creeping in due to Everton's recent record at Anfield...
We don't have to speak about quality and quality differences and stuff like this. Are we in a better moment in the table? Yes, of course, that's obvious. But in a game itself, whichever team we would play who are in a much better moment than we are, for example, we would love to win and if it's a derby even more so. The stats, from my point of view, they help Everton rather than us because they want to strike back, they want to show that they can do different. They can sort a lot of problems in one game maybe, so we have a very, very important football game for us – but that must be enough for us. Everybody thinks there's no doubt about this team how much they are connected to this club. When you are connected to this club then this is a game – whichever situation you are in – you want to win and that's what we have to show.
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