“Just show class” – Jurgen Klopp’s message on tragedy chanting in Man United vs. Liverpool

Jurgen Klopp has called for an end to the tragedy chanting that marred Liverpool’s last visit to Manchester United ahead of the sides renewing their rivalry on Sunday.

The Reds head back to Old Trafford for a crucial Premier League fixture just three weeks on from being beaten 4-3 at the same ground in the FA Cup quarter-finals.

On that occasion, a thrilling contest between English Football’s two biggest clubs was sullied by persistent tragedy chanting that resulted in Greater Manchester Police making eight arrests.

And Klopp is hoping not to hear a repeat when his team travel to Manchester for a game that will go a long way to deciding their title prospects this season.

He said: “I think it is super important.

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“There are different aspects but one aspect is that I don’t hear it, honestly, when I am on the sideline but I get told it happens and that is obviously not great.

“But in general it is just helpful that we educate our kids in specific things: respect, understanding, all these kinds of things. 

“I just see it that way that two of the biggest clubs in the world, let’s just show a bit of class in these moments.

“So don’t sing this or that, just show class, have a fight on the pitch, let’s just play football, if you want be happy, if you lose, whatever but besides all of that just show a bit of class, that would be my wish really for all of us.”

 

Learning from the FA Cup defeat?

On their last visit to Old Trafford, Liverpool twice took the lead before being pegged back in the final moments of the 90 minutes and suffering defeat in extra time.

And Klopp is keen to see the Reds reproduce the best elements of that performance, rather than the worst.

He added: “Thank you for reminding me [of the FA Cup game]. What did I learn? That the 10th interview is not as good as the ninth to give after the game!

“The story of the Game, we spoke about it at the time, they started better and we took over. We were really good that day but we didn’t finish the situations off.

“Extra time was too much for us and we couldn’t avoid the mistakes we could before [in normal time].

“It was the day we couldn’t control it any more, United turned the game around and United is a top side playing at home but we have to do what we did from minute 15 to 70-something.

“Football is not that easy. We have to find a way to cause United problems. They will try the same. Against this opponent, in this stadium, we better play a really good game if we want something from it.

“Will I miss these games? No, I had them often enough. What a manager I would be if I said I’ll miss the United games or the City games and all the others I don’t. No.

“It is all fine. I will miss probably all of them but we will see how I deal with missing football.”