Jurgen Klopp believes Liverpool vs Atletico should not have been given greenlight

According to Italian publication Corriere dello Sport (h/t Mirror), Everton boss Carlo Ancelotti has revealed what Jurgen Klopp thought about the Champions League second leg tie against Atletico Madrid.

The Italian has revealed that the Liverpool boss was unhappy that the match was scheduled to go ahead in spite of the coronavirus scare that was on the rise.

“I spoke with Klopp a few days ago, he told me that the decision to play Liverpool-Atletico was a criminal act and I think he’s right.”

It would turn out to be Liverpool’s last match before the season was suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic. Klopp’s feelings on the issue were made clear prior to kick-off when he warned off a fan for trying to touch him.

Spain is one of the countries that has been badly affected by the virus. A number of Madrid fans made the trip to Anfield to watch their team play in what could be called an act of negligence by the organizing authorities. This gains more context when one takes into account what happened in the Atalanta-Valencia clash in Italy.

A callous call

Klopp has spoken out strongly in favour of tackling the current situation. He sent a well thought out and sensible letter to fans, urging them to stay safe and how we are all in this together.

It is hard to imagine he would have thought otherwise watching over 50,000 people throng Anfield during the tie against Atletico. Over 3000 fans making the trip from Covid-19 affected Madrid will not have put him at ease.

Klopp has recently admitted he found it difficult to focus on preparing for the knockout tie after hearing about the heightened situation in Spain following the closure of schools.

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The Liverpool boss is under no illusion that tackling the pandemic at hand is more important than the sport. We believe he is right when he says it was ‘criminal’ to allow such a congregation of fans together, especially when a number of them were from a virus affected zone.

Hopefully, none of the spectators or others involved in the tie has been made to suffer for a situation not of their making.