Klopp says Liverpool are best team he has taken to a final

Liverpool (AFP) – Jurgen Klopp says his current Liverpool team are the strongest side he has taken to a final as he plots Champions League glory against Premier League rivals Tottenham on Saturday.

Liverpool are preparing for their second successive Champions League final after a run that included an incredible comeback to overturn a three-goal first-leg deficit against Barcelona in the semi-final by winning 4-0 at Anfield.

It will be Klopp’s fourth European final as a manager, having been a Champions League runner-up with Borussia Dortmund in 2013, before losing the Europa League final with Liverpool in 2016.

Their run to Madrid this year has been marked by a never-say-die spirit, with Klopp suggesting that his team of 2019 is better than those that have lost his three previous European finals.

“I don’t like to blame my other teams (for the European final defeats),” said Klopp, whose side lost out to Real Madrid in the final last year.

“I love them all. They all gave everything but I have never been part of a final with a better team than this.

“I am not so surprised by this because our boys mix our potential with attitude in the best way I have witnessed. That is brilliant.”  

However Klopp, speaking at Liverpool’s training ground Tuesday, made clear that he has yet to surpass his first major achievement as a manager, leading minnows Mainz into the Bundesliga for the first time in their history 15 years ago, on a minimal budget.

– Career highlight? –

Asked if Saturday’s final marked the pinnacle of his career, the manager, whose side finished a single point behind champions Manchester City in the Premier League, said: “If I win it, yes. It would be different to the last finals.

“Is bringing the team to the Champions League final (in itself) the biggest moment in my career? No, that was 2004, getting promoted with Mainz. If you had known the money we had, the circumstances we had… and the fact was that nobody needed us in the first league.

“If I win the Champions League, though, I will have to think about this question again.”

Klopp is hopeful that forward Roberto Firmino will be fit to play a part in Saturday’s final, having missed the final three matches of the season with a muscle issue.

Midfielder Naby Keita, however, will not recover from his adductor injury in time to face Tottenham.

from World Soccer Talk http://bit.ly/2HHvvMn