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Jurgen Klopp says he “doesn’t have the skills for mind games,” after responding to my Thursday Sportsmail column on Friday.
So it will be the same Klopp who gets up and watches the opponent warm up before the match ?!
He knows what he’s doing, he’s incredibly smart which is why he’s one of the best managers we’ve had in the Premier League.
Klopp once tried to stare at me before a game. That’s good, he has a presence and an aura that he uses for the benefit of his team.
But what I pointed out on Thursday was that, referring to how many penalties Manchester United have won against Liverpool, I believe he was trying to put himself in the referee’s head ahead of the huge game of Sunday at Anfield.
I noticed how not since Sir Alex Ferguson had seen such blatant mind games. Klopp denies this and says: “I am not Sir Alex”.
But then why did he mention United’s sanctions so specifically? I don’t know if he was accusing United players of diving or suggesting they got favorable rulings. Only he knows his motivation.
I also think he’s getting tangy because of Liverpool’s recent form. I’ve seen him with him before, he’s not a good loser. Ferguson either. They look more alike than he might think.
But I was disappointed, even surprised, by the reaction of Liverpool fans and their former player Didi Hamann to what I said.
The way they interpreted my column was to suggest that I said there was an arbitration ‘bias’ towards United. I didn’t, because there isn’t and never has been.
I never used the word “bias” anywhere. There was an “aura” around United when Ferguson was there, yes. But that no longer exists. In fact, there is more aura around Klopp and Liverpool than United and Old Trafford.
United, under Ferguson, would try to intimidate you. They were sending the players one by one – Rio Ferdinand, Roy Keane, Gary Neville – it was a tactic to influence the next decision, not the one that had just gone.
As an arbitrator, I have been advised of this. But you had to be strong. What I meant was that Klopp is wrong if he believes the refs are feeling that intimidation now. They don’t.
Klopp also said: ‘When people like Mark Clattenburg talk like they talk it always says a lot more about them than it could ever say about me. So if he was in my situation he would obviously play mind games.
Would I play mind games? Of course I would, it’s about winning. Klopp knows this, just like Ferguson did.
Source: m.allfootballapp.com
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