Klopp and Matip looking forward to derby
Jürgen Klopp is excited and optimistic ahead of the 228th instalment of one of football’s greatest rivalries. He knows how much is at stake and exactly what is needed from himself and his players in order to secure a vital three points.
“We all need to be ready and do the right things in the right moment,” the boss said. “Be aggressive, but not too aggressive, be hard, but especially against yourself, fight for everything and try everything to make your own supporters happy.”
Klopp went on to describe the derby as “magical” before highlighting some of the dangers that come with facing Everton. However, he ended on a positive note, issuing confidence to all supporters by saying, “I cannot imagine one reason why we shouldn’t be confident”.
Centre-back, Joel Matip is also ready and fired up for his first Merseyside derby, after he was forced to miss the trip to Goodison Park through injury. The German knows exactly what the occasion means to everyone involved. “It’s a special game for all of the supporters and the club. It will be a tense game and we will fight and give everything to win.”
Everton team news
As reported earlier this week, Adam Lallana will miss out with the thigh injury he suffered while playing for England last weekend. He will be joined on the injury list by international teammates Jordan Henderson and Daniel Sturridge.
Henderson had been working hard this week in an attempt to recover from a foot injury. He was optimistic that he’d be able to take part but Klopp stated that the captain had suffered “a little setback” and therefore would be unavailable for selection. Sturridge has been recovering from a hip injury for the last four weeks but was back in first team training this week. However, Klopp has said there’s “no chance” the striker will be involved today.
There is some good news, though. Apart from Lallana, Klopp believes that all the players who have been away on international duty will be fit and ready. This includes Brazilian duo Phillipe Coutinho and Roberto Firminio, who were flown back on a private jet so that they could join the team for Thursday training.
A new striker called Luis
Reports from Italy are suggesting that Liverpool could make a summer move for Sampdoria striker, Luis Muriel. The Colombian, who has been in fine form this season scoring 12 goals, has a release clause of £24million. The Reds will be facing a lot of competition, though, as the striker himself has admitted to having offers from elsewhere in Italy, as well as in England and Spain. This is expected to make the price rise to over £40million.
New Anfield dressing room unveiled
The brand new, state of the art dressing rooms will be used for the first time in this weekend’s Merseyside derby. As part of the redevelopment to the Main Stand, the dressing rooms have been given a makeover in order to mirror the changing facilities at Melwood. The players have been using temporary facilities at Anfield since September, but will move to their new home today.
