Jurgen Klopp reveals Champions League group reaction
Jurgen Klopp admits he ‘laughed pretty loud’ at Liverpool’s Champions League group.
Thursday’s draw for the opening stages of Europe’s elite club competition pitted Klopp’s side against familiar opposition in Atletico Madrid, Porto and AC Milan.
Spanish champions Atletico have ex-Reds striker Luis Suarez in their ranks and dumped his old club out in the last-16 on a 4-2 aggregate in March 2020.
Porto battled Liverpool in the Champions League’s 2017/18 and 2018/19 knockout rounds, losing heavily on both occasions in the two-legged affairs.
Milan make up the Group B line-up and are set for their first competitive appearance to Anfield despite facing its hosts in the 2005 and 2007 showpieces.
“I laughed, to be honest, pretty loud because it is a tough group obviously,” admitted Klopp.
“It’s Champions League, so that’s how it is, and you have to play the best teams in Europe, and obviously some of them are in our group!
“We played, I don’t know how often, already against Porto, so they will be waiting for us.
“We have obviously a little bit of [an] open bill with Atletico, and AC Milan, a historical one obviously.
“So I think our supporters should be looking forward to it – we do, for sure.
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“I know that people sit always at home and think, ‘Ah come on, that would be cool, then you have this team together and the worst of Pot Four and the worst of pot one’ and all this kind of stuff.
“We didn’t get that obviously but we’re still pretty ambitious and would like to show the really hard work from last year, qualifying for the Champions League, that it was worth it.
“That’s how we will play the games.”