Jurgen Klopp admits it will be even more difficult for Liverpool to keep pace with Manchester City next season.
Having spectacularly overhauled Pep Guardiola’s side to win the Premier League last year, the Reds have fallen backwards this time around, and now face a battle just to finish in the top four. City, meanwhile, could be crowned champions this weekend if they beat Crystal Palace on Saturday and Liverpool win at Manchester United on Sunday.
It would mean Guardiola’s men will have won three of the last four league crowns, and they are well-fancied to clinch their first Champions League title this season as well, having gained a significant first-leg advantage over Paris Saint-Germain in their semi-final clash this week.
What’s been said?
Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Klopp told reporters: "It always becomes harder because City never stops. That is clear. They did not stop and they will not stop.
“Two years in a row they had us on their necks. OK, for one year we were ahead of them, but we never expected that to happen for the next 10 years now in a row.
“Now [Manchester] United is coming up, definitely everyone can see that. Chelsea is obviously in a brilliant place, a top squad, I said it before that Thomas [Tuchel] inherits a present and you can see that they are really good so it will not get easier.
"We're not just talking about City. There will be other teams for sure. Like Leicester - brilliant manager and a top squad dealing with different situations. Nobody should write off Tottenham or Arsenal. Obviously West Ham is now flying.
“How can it be easier? It is not only City. The good thing about City is that you only meet them twice a season! So you have to win all the other games as well and that is tough enough in this league.
"But that is next year and who cares about that at the moment. We will give our absolute everything again next year but for now we are concentrated on Sunday."
What else did Klopp have to say?
The Reds boss was also asked if it had hurt watching the likes of City, Chelsea and United competing in the latter stages of the Champions League and Europa League this week, while his own team continues to struggle.
He said: "Yeah, but that would be really weak. We are responsible for the things that happen to us. We were involved in the last few years constantly in semi-finals and fighting for league titles. I don't know if other teams felt bad because of us but I wish for them not and I don't do that. I'm not like that. I'm not a person like this.
"They deserve the situation they are in. That is football, that is fair. They won an awful lot of games. We will challenge them again next year but this year we can only finish our season as good as possible, and we have nothing to do with semi-finals and finals.
"We know that but I don't feel bad because of that. I had my bad moments in the season for other reasons, not because other teams are winning more games than us. That's not my problem, my only problem is with the opponent of the specific weekend and not think, 'Oh my God, City again and United are back on track' and all these kind of things.
“Life is too short for these kind of worries or thoughts."
Further reading
- Klopp fears financial cost if Liverpool miss out on Champions League
- Carragher calls for an end to the Mane, Salah and Firmino era at Liverpool
