Jurgen Klopp played it cool as he refused to get drawn into a war of words with Jose Mourinho. The Manchester United manager had a dig at the Liverpool man after he was asked if he would consider himself as one of the “greatest managers in the world”, should he not win the Premier League.
The Liverpool Echo quoted the Portuguese manager as saying:
“Do you ask that question to the manager that finished third in the Premier League or fourth?”
Mourinho further claimed that Klopp had never won anything outside Germany while the United manager picked up trophies in a number of countries.
Speaking after our 2-1 win over Leicester City, the Liverpool man seemed interested in what Mourinho said but didn’t refute any claims made (h/t Liverpool Echo):
“Er, what?!? What did he say? Now I’m interested.
“He’s right, that’s right, if he is speaking about me. Probably there are a few more managers in the league but you thought it was about me – no problem. He is right absolutely.
“He is probably the most successful manager in the Premier League at the moment. I have no problem with that.”
The German further added that he will start watching Mourinho’s interviews but didn’t provide a stinging rebuke.
“(As for anything else) I can’t say anything about that. No clue what you are talking about to be 100% honest.
“But if he said I didn’t win anything outside Germany then he’s right – that’s easy to see.”
This was a smart tactic from Klopp to not get embroiled in a back and forth with Mourinho. The German has seen his side pick up a maximum 12 points in the Premier League and we are currently at the top of the table.
We should be concentrating on our team rather than fighting battles with others. It will be interesting to see if we can continue our winning streak once the international break is over but Klopp will have planned for that.
