Guardiola gives verdict on Klopp's contract and Mo Salah's FWA award win

Pep Guardiola gives his verdict on the contract extension of Jurgen Klopp and Mohamed Salah winning FWA POTY award

Speaking in his pre-match presser as quoted by Liverpool Echo, Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola revealed his thoughts regarding Mohamed Salah getting the Football Writers Association award as well as the contract extension of Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool.

The Reds will be filled with joy as Klopp has now extended his stay at Anfield till 2026. Along with that, the Egyptian international has also won the FWA award for Player of the season. Salah edged past Kevin De Bruyne and Declan Rice to land this illustrious title.

The Merseysiders take on Newcastle United over the weekend as the Cityzens face Leeds United. The Mancunian and Liverpool-based clubs are only separated by a solitary point in the PL table and every match is nothing less than a celebrated finale.

The Spanish manager heartily congratulated Klopp, asserting that this was good news for England’s top flight in general. Given that they have been rivals for the biggest trophies since their time in Germany and now in England, the Spaniard’s comments come across as a bit formal and diplomatic.

Pep Guardiola congratulated Mohamed Salah and Jurgen Klopp

“Congratulations to Jurgen and Liverpool, it’s really good for the Premier League. I wish them all the best. Everyone has their situation and if we decide to stay longer, it’s because I decide not because my colleague Jurgen extended.”

The former Barcelona manager also took the opportunity to congratulate Salah, insisting that the Reds have the best players in most positions, which is why they win all the accolades. It comes across as a tongue-in-cheek comment from the ex-Bayern Munich boss but then again, he hasn’t really said anything wrong.

“Congratulations to Salah. Jurgen said, they have the best keeper, the second-best second keeper in the world, the best central defender, the best holding midfielder, the best striker, so it’s normal they win all the awards.”

Congratulatory Pep

Guardiola shares great admiration for Klopp and vice versa. Those who follow their careers would know that both of them have made this fact evident with their comments about each other in the past. Whilst that may be true, we certainly shouldn’t get complacent as the Sky Blues still lead the Premier League table.

Jurgen Klopp and Mohamed Salah have been key factors in the resurgence of Liverpool.

With such lavish praise, it is also possible that the Spaniard is playing mind games as we head into the latter stages of the season. With only a few games left to spare and a hectic schedule in May, the different tricks of the trade may be rightly used.

When asked whether de Bruyne was disappointed at being trumped by Salah, Pep simply stated “He’s won it before” to rebuff any claims of that manner. The German and Spanish managers both played out exhilarating draws against each other in the 2021-22 Prem season. with the most recent one coming earlier this month in a 2-2 draw at the Etihad.

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As we are on the cusp of a potential quadruple, we should be wary of any complacency that could creep into our game. We should also try to minimize the off-field chatter as we try to decipher our opponents one by one.

We have been in exceptional form recently but even a small slip up could massively affect us at this stage of the campaign. Pep Guardiola’s comments also highlight how far we have come as a club in the last few years, but there is always some room for improvement.