There are some significant changes ahead for the new season of Champions League football and Liverpool have been handed a boost with Jurgen Klopp proven right over the alterations he had long called for. English teams playing in Wednesday night Champions League matches will no longer be involved in early kick-off Premier League games the following Saturday.
Jurgen Klopp said: “I’m afraid to say but I think it (running out of steam) could happen not only to us but to other teams as well. You (BT Sport) my special friends ask us to go on Saturday at 12.30pm, which is nearly a crime to be honest. It has nothing to do with the game tonight but congratulations for that. My only interest in the moment is that I get a thumbs up, nobody injured, let’s recover immediately. We take it. The boys are completely disappointed, frustrated, really, but we don’t have time for it to be honest. It’s just get fresh legs as quick as possible and go again, that’s it.”
BT Sport presenter Des Kelly might just be the happiest man in football right now because sure enough, come Saturday, a last minute penalty equaliser from Pascal Gross would deny Liverpool victory on the south coast after Diogo Jota had fired them into the lead on the hour mark. An angry Klopp snapped at Kelly in a pitchside interview and the two of them held a heated debate over the issue for eight minutes.
Des Kelly said: “Maybe you’re firing at the wrong target. We work within the Premier League rules and the Premier League makes the rules. That’s the Premier League clubs.”
Jurgen Klopp replied: “I don’t know how often I have to say it, you picked the 12:30 kick off. If we play at 3 o’clock or 5:30, it’s exactly the same.”
Des Kelly pointed out: “If you come down here and have a go at the broadcasters, it doesn’t go anywhere. It doesn’t change anything.”
However,
Jurgen Klopp retorted: “After Wednesday, Saturday 12:30 is really dangerous for the players.”
Klopp has repeatedly railed against the issue for several years.
Back in 2018 when Liverpool were facing the prospect of a 12:30pm Merseyside Derby match against Everton at Goodison Park on the Saturday after they tackled Manchester City in the Champions League quarter-finals,
Jurgen Klopp remarked: “I know countries where they cancel whole matchdays so teams can be in the best shape for big games in Europe. We play at 7.45pm on Wednesday and 12.30 on the Saturday. Oops, it’s only Liverpool. We are going to have two very intense games against City and the one in between at Everton is not going to be much less intense either. I would at least like to have seen it put on at a normal time and not at breakfast.”
