Jurgen Klopp says Chelsea's rivals relying on Liverpool
Tuesday 31 January 2017 09:02, UK
Jurgen Klopp knows Chelsea's rivals are depending on Liverpool to breathe new life into the title race with victory at Anfield on Tuesday night.
Liverpool were the first side to beat Chelsea in this season's Premier League but go into the rematch with a 10-point deficit after a run of two points from a possible nine.
That slump in league form has coincided with exits from both domestic cup competitions, and a win for Tuesday's visitors would mean four straight home defeats for Klopp.
The Chelsea game is "another chance" to put that run right, according to the Reds boss, who is aware of the wider implications of a positive result.
"I'm sure a lot of teams in the league are on our side and want us to win," he said. "That gap would obviously make the league a little bit more exciting for people.
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"But that means nothing. We want to go for these three points and that's enough to be motivated at the highest, highest level.
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"If we are seven behind Chelsea we can't say now we go for them. They might win the rest of the games. We need the points. We cannot waste time or points any more. It's not about us saying we can catch them."
Klopp insists Liverpool have "actually had a very good Premier League season" to date and is not convinced a fourth-placed finish would be a disappointment.
He said: "I think it's possible we could qualify for the Champions League and should we then say, 'Sorry, I know we lost here and there and that's why we didn't become champions'?
"Is it allowed to celebrate a position like this, in this league, in this strong league, with the outstanding run of Chelsea so far? I think, yes, it should be allowed that we celebrate something like this."
Klopp will make a late decision on whether to start Sadio Mane, who is back on Merseyside after Senegal's Africa Cup of Nations exit.
