Liverpool travel to Aston Villa on Sunday evening, live on Sky Sports Premier League; Kick-off 7.15pm
Friday 2 October 2020 13:37, UK
Jurgen Klopp admits he is concerned about the prospect of releasing Liverpool players to international duty during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Klopp takes his Premier League champions to Aston Villa on Sunday evening before a 13-day gap in the domestic fixture list in which the vast majority of his squad will be playing for their national teams.
His concerns about that situation are based around the fact the players will travel to countries where protocols around coronavirus have not been made clear, and also that players will be expected to return to league action on the Saturday after the midweek international fixtures.
"I don't want to sound disrespectful about how other countries are doing it but this is the place that we know and we know how we are dealing with it," said Klopp.
"So I am slightly concerned because it is difficult to be in contact with all FAs (football associations) all over the world.
"I understand it, I really understand how difficult the situation is but it's not exactly perfect, the information we get from certain FAs.
"As a football club you are pretty alone in these moments, we send the players away and then we have another challenge because we have to play a Premier League game on a Saturday after they have travelled from, maybe Peru, on the Thursday or Friday.
"You have to make sure you bring the players home in the quickest and safest way and then we have to see how they are before we try to get a result on the Saturday."
The weekend after the international break sees Liverpool travel to Goodison Park for the Merseyside derby, in which they will face one of several sides Klopp feels has made great improvements over the summer.
"We have to attack the title this year and we want to improve because all of the other clubs will improve," he said.
"Every other club has made good signings so far and Aston Villa are included in that with their signings. Everton have improved massively with the players they have brought in.
"It's just the situation regardless of our league position last season - other teams will improve and you have to make big steps. We know we have to make big steps and keep performing at our highest level."
Liverpool striker Rhian Brewster is on the verge of completing a permanent move to Sheffield United in a deal worth up to £23.5m.
Liverpool will retain a 15 per cent sell-on clause for the 20-year-old and a buy-back clause that is valid for the next three years.
The summer transfer window closes at 11pm on Monday October 5 with a feast of activity throughout the day involving the biggest names in football.
Some of the highlights to enjoy on Sky Sports News and across our Sky Sports platforms:
You can also follow the stories on Sky Sports' digital platforms, with our dedicated Transfer Centre blog.
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