Advertisement

Jurgen Klopp questions Liverpool fans groups removing Kop banners: ‘Don’t blame the players’

 (Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
(Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has urged angry fans not to blame the players when fielding questions over the controversial European Super League.

The reigning Premier League champions were the first team to play since confirmation of the six Premier League clubs planning to become part of a breakaway league.

Before kickoff at Elland Road a plane flew overhead trailing a banner saying "say no to superleague" while the Liverpool team coach was greeted with fans venting their anger.

The German has previously spoken out against a European Super League and on Monday evening said that his opinion had not changed since 2019 when he said he hoped it never happened.

"I heard first hand about it yesterday," he said ahead of Monday's Premier League game at Leeds United. "We got some information, not a lot to be honest. Most of the things you can read in newspapers or wherever.

"It's a tough one. People are not happy with that, I can understand that. But I cannot say a lot more about it because we were not involved in any processes, not the players, not me. We didn't know about it."

Twelve of Europe's top football clubs announced on Sunday they were launching a breakaway Super League in the face of widespread opposition from within the game and beyond.

Liverpool have won the Champions League, or previous European Cup, six times with Klopp celebrating success in 2019.

Klopp said his aim as a manager was always to coach a team in the Champions League and he liked the fact that a club like West Ham, not one of the 12, could play in the tournament next year if they finished in the top four in England.

"I don't want them to, because we want to do that, but I like that they have the chance," said Klopp, whose side have struggled to reproduce the form that earned them the Premier League title last season.

The German said Liverpool was "much more than some decisions" and the supporters and the team were the most important part of the game.

"We have to make sure that really nothing gets in between that," he added. "I heard we took banners down at Anfield but I don't understand that because the players didn't do anything wrong.

"The boys didn't do anything wrong apart from not winning all football games. I really want to make sure that everyone knows that."

Additional reporting by Reuters.

Read More

European Super League: Latest news and live updates as Premier League teams sign up to breakaway Super League

Read Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher’s passionate rallying cry to stop European Super League

Manchester United and Juventus stock market value leaps by a combined $550 million on European Super League move

Backlash from fans against plans for European Super League