The UEFA Champions League round of 16 draws have been made a few hours ago, as teams now know who they will be facing come February 2019 when the round of sixteen will kickoff, and one manager that is relishing the challenge, is Liverpool’s manager, Klopp.
After a fantastic outing over the weekend and a win over Manchester United, an opponent Liverpool has struggled to win a game over, Liverpool’s manager, is still positive that is team have what it takes to advance ahead of German champions, Bayern Munich in the round of sixteen.
The fixture which has been seen by many as the most difficult one will see Liverpool take on their host at Anfield on Tuesday, February 19, 2019, and the second leg on Wednesday, March 13 at the Allianz Arena.
Klopp will be facing a side he has played against 29 times, winning just 9 games, with 4 draws, and losing 16 times!
While reacting to the draws, Klopp speaking to Liverpoolfc.com, said:
On the draw:
Difficult. Good draw. It was clear it would be difficult [and] they are obviously a top side. For me it’s nice, going to Germany. But it’s just the draw. So we have no time to prepare the game, a lot of time obviously, and hopefully, we have all our players available then. It will be a tough one, an interesting one, and I am looking forward to it.
On whether his history with Bayern makes any difference to the tie:
I don’t know. This is a different Bayern than what I played, we are already here for three years [and] since the Audi Cup [in the summer of 2017]. We all know the stadium, the atmosphere will be great. It’s a really nice trip for all our supporters, it’s a wonderful city, so that’s all good. The flight is not too long and we obviously know more about German football than about any other league, that’s true, but that doesn’t make a big, massive difference. In the end, the boys have to decide it on the pitch. Let’s give it a try.
On the draw pairing two of the world’s biggest club:
One hundred per cent. In the last couple of years, they have dominated the German league in the best period of German football. Everybody was talking about Germany being in a really good moment and Bayern was dominating the league, that’s the truth. It’s nice. It’s obviously long ago that I played Bayern in a competitive game, so I’m really looking forward to it.
On whether the fact, Bayern have a winter break could influence the tie:
The winter break doesn’t make a massive difference. It makes only a massive difference with injuries and stuff like that, German clubs have the time, two or three weeks, to bring players back and stuff like that while in the same moment we have 10 games. But in February it should not have a massive influence.
On Xherdan Shaqiri and members of his backroom team facing their former club:
It’s nice for Mona [Nemmer] and Korny [Andreas Kornmayer] and Shaq. I will meet former players [too] and it’s good. But in the end it’s a football game on the highest level and we have to play it. We knew it before, it’s not that anybody thought ‘thank God it’s Liverpool’, so we don’t think ‘thank God it’s Bayern’. It’s a tough one, but that’s how it should be. It’s the last 16 of the Champions League so there are only tough teams in and I’m really excited about it.