After Liverpool lost out on the top four, JURGEN KLOPP said he would “drive a player himself” if they wanted to go.
Following Manchester United’s 4-1 victory over Chelsea on Thursday, the Reds were relegated to Europa League play for the upcoming season.
It is the “bare minimum” for Liverpool, and Mo Salah said there is “no excuse” for missing out on a Champions League spot. He admitted to being “totally devastated” about it.
Later, manager Klopp downplayed the Egyptian’s remarks, although he added that he would not obstruct any player if they desired to go in order to compete in the Champions League.
Before tomorrow’s match against Southampton on the final day, the German was asked if he was afraid that Salah would depart. He responded, “No worries, no.
“I could not read anything that could point in that direction; I could only hear what he said.
“Mo loves to be here, and he said that Mo was a part of apologies for what ‘we’ did, not apologies for ‘what the other guys did.'”
Everything is fine. I would have to dismiss a player if they ever to me and said, “Oh, we didn’t qualify for the Champions League.” I would take him myself to the other club.
“I would take the key and beckon them to enter the vehicle. Which destination do you seek? Driven by myself.
‘Oh, we didn’t qualify for the Champions League!’ is something I could never comprehend. I go because I have to work at the Champions League. You cannot go at this time since I am the one who made this mess. With Mo, this is absolutely not the case.
“And no one else told me; they ask if they can take a longer vacation or something; but no one asks me whether they have to return to work after their vacation. So, it wasn’t brought up throughout our talk.
In the last five years, Liverpool has advanced to three Champions League finals and won the competition six times in 2019.
The Reds received £80 million for making it to the final the previous season, but they would receive just 25% of that amount for winning the Europa League.
When asked if his team will receive a “booby prize” by participating in Europe’s second-tier league, Klopp, 55, responded, “What is a booby?! To learn that word, I had to reach the fifth grade.
Not for me, please. I can see where you’re coming from; in football, on the level we typically compete, everything revolves around the Champions League due to money, opponents, and other factors.
And it’s not because I’ve paid close attention to the Europa League group stage matches over the past four years.
“You have a lot of other things to do when you are in the CL, but I really enjoy European competitions. That makes no difference to me, either. I am aware that there is no difference when you play.
There will be challenging opponents, possibly from other nations, and ultimately a huge prize to win.
There will be challenging opponents, possibly from other nations, and ultimately a huge prize to win.
“Not that I’m saying we’ll do that right away, but we’ll surely give it a shot. People may say, “Oh, it’s just the Europa League,” but Anfield will be rocking come kickoff on Thursday night, regardless of the opposition. That is all I require.
“I cannot assist someone who wants to go the entire year thinking, “Ah, but it’s not Champions League! ” I’m not sure how you can assist them.