Pep Guardiola has said something special about the Liverpool team he faced when Jurgen Klopp was in charge.
Liverpool’s rivalry with Manchester City is less historic than either clubs’ unfriendly relationship with Manchester United. However, it was often the Premier League title decider during the years Jurgen Klopp spent as the Reds’ manager at Anfield.
The German defeated Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City eight times in all competitions as Liverpool manager and suffered seven losses, showing just how competitive their fixtures were.
Guardiola recently got the better of Arne Slot as Liverpool were thrashed 3-0 at the Etihad Stadium. However, the Dutchman held the bragging rights last season, with his side defeating Manchester City home and away in the Premier League.
There are bound to be some more intense battles between the managers in the future, but it is unlikely they will compare with Klopp and Guardiola’s rivalry.
In fact, the Catalonian born boss has hailed Klopp’s Liverpool team, describing them as the toughest side he has ever faced. This is some compliment, considering Guardiola has faced the finest teams in Europe as the manager of both Barcelona and Bayern Munich.
He told Off Topic Footy: “Was the best team I ever faced in my life. Can you tell me how it’s Mane, Salah, Firmino, Fabinho, Henderson, van Dijk in his prime and central defenders, Jurgen with Anfield and everyone, we beat that team? Easy? No come on.
“The hours and hours of thinking work and work and work and work and that’s why this looks easy. Even in the club we can think about it, even our players can think about it, even I myself think about it.
“There is just one way to solve that, just one – lose, to realise oh just how difficult is that business. Because the business is so difficult and that’s why you have to realise, take good decisions and then come back.”
When Klopp stepped down as Liverpool manager, it was truly the end of an era. Since then, he has taken up the head of football role with Red Bull, a slightly less demanding role than taking charge of England’s most successful club.
Guardiola could make a similar decision in the near future, as he has already announced plans to step away from football when his Man City contract expires in 2027.
However, right now, he and Slot will fight it out in the Premier League as they look to catch up with Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal.
