Klopp and Ten Hag urge fans to avoid tragedy chants in Old Trafford rematch

Jürgen Klopp and Erik ten Hag have appealed for fans at Old Trafford on Sunday to avoid the tragedy chanting that marred Manchester United’s recent FA Cup win over Liverpool.

Klopp called on supporters to “show a bit of class” and his United counterpart said the game must not be “used as an excuse for abusing rival fans” about past tragedies.

Two United supporters were arrested on suspicion of tragedy chanting after their team’s thrilling 4-3 victory last month. The Football Association issued a statement condemning the chants that emanated from the Stretford End before and during the game.

With the fierce rivals meeting again in the Premier League, Klopp has made another attempt to address tragedy-related abuse in the fixture. The Liverpool manager and his United counterpart, Erik ten Hag, issued a joint statement last season calling for an end to chanting about Hillsborough, Heysel and Munich. The two clubs’ charity foundations have also come together to deliver an education programme to schoolchildren on the impact of tragedy-related abuse.

“I think it is super important,” said Klopp as he prepared for the return to Old Trafford. “There are different aspects but one aspect is that I don’t hear it, honestly, when I am on the sideline but I get told it happens and that is obviously not great. But in general it is just helpful that we educate our kids in specific things: respect, understanding, all these kinds of things.

“I just see two of the biggest clubs in the world, so let’s just show a bit of class in these moments. Don’t sing this or sing that. Just show class, let the teams fight on the pitch, let’s play football; that is all fine. Besides that, just show a bit of class, that would be my wish for all of us.”

Ten Hag said in words released early from his programme notes: “It is part of my duty to remind every supporter fortunate enough to be at the game that it must be enjoyed in the proper way, and not used as an excuse for abusing rival fans about Hillsborough, Heysel or any other historic tragedies.

“This is one of the truly great rivalries in world sport, for so many of the right reasons, and it is our responsibility to keep it that way. Whether the clubs meet at Old Trafford or Anfield, all supporters must focus entirely on backing their team and both Jürgen and I trust that we can count on that happening today.”