Jurgen Klopp Responds Bitterly to Jose Mourinho's Liverpool Comments
Jurgen Klopp has bitterly reacted to Jose Mourinho's comments that the 2017/18 season will be more difficult for his Liverpool squad.
The Reds boss was quoted by the Liverpool Echo as he seemingly lashed out at the Manchester United manager over the latter's suggestion that their extra games this coming term would ensure that they faced a tougher campaign than they did in 2016/17.
Mourinho alluded to the fact that Liverpool and Premier League holders Chelsea had easier seasons last time out due to only playing one match per week - quotes that Klopp couldn't help but bite back on when quizzed on the matter.
He rebuked: “I’m not interested in what Jose Mourinho says. Why should I talk about Manchester United? Jose is talking about us, yes.
“Okay, we had a season like Man United the year before. I don’t know if anybody asked us how it feels.
"Sorry that we lost the final, yes, that's right. We played Sevilla, they played Ajax. That's the difference.
“So we suffered during the season. Right. The Europa League was hard. Yes, Chelsea will feel also the difference, they played something like 13 players last season. But it's also not my problem if they use only 11, well done.
“I don’t want to be part of this. I answer if you ask but I am not interested.”
Liverpool fans will likely be fairly happy that Klopp fought back at Mourinho's seeming mind games, but other football supporters were quick to point out that the German had been disrespectful to Ajax with his own comments.
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The Eredivisie club won plenty of admirers en route to the Europa League final before succumbing to a 2-0 defeat to United in Stockholm, and fans on social media sites such as Twitter feel that Klopp's quotes weren't in keeping with maintaining a professional facade as a result.
Mourinho had alleged that the Reds and Blues would find the upcoming season more difficult than last time out due to the increase in fixtures as a result of their European adventures.
He said: "This season is going to be a little bit more balanced because of the fact that the top six are all in European competitions.
"Not like last season, when Chelsea and Liverpool played all season one match per week, with all the others playing in European competitions. That is going to create a new situation for Chelsea and Liverpool."
