Juventus, just like Bayern, were eliminated in the knockout phase of the Champions League after Villarreal, led by Unai Emery, made a sensation and beat both teams in the eighth and quarter-finals.
The yellow submarine in the semifinals is waiting for the biggest dragon so far in the form of the Liverpool team.
However, Jurgen Klopp announces that he will not underestimate his Spanish rivals and thus fall into the same trap as Julian Nigelsman and Massimiliano Allegri.
Maybe their small advantage was that Juventus and Bayern underestimated them because they are seventh in the league. But that will not be the case with us. We got that Trump card out of their hands. After Bayern, they played with Bilbao, changed the entire first team and managed to play a draw! The Spanish league is very difficult, but Unai Emery finds a solution for every situation. Klopp said before the duel in the first semifinal:
“Of course, we spent a lot of time analyzing Villarreal. I used to feel great respect for Emery and Villarreal, but only now do I see them in the right light and I can only say, “Wow!” Impressive”, said the head of Liverpool.
Jurgen Klopp suffered a defeat in his first European final on the Liverpool bench, against Emery, who was the coach of Sevilla at the time.
-I didn’t think about that final for a long time. I remember saying that we would come back stronger and I think we succeeded in that. It was a very complicated and difficult season. That final was 64 games for us this season. It can’t be compared to this today. Emery is obsessed with the smallest details. He has different pressing mechanisms and ways to react to different situations. He is a world-class coach and does an amazing job, said the German, and added:
“This is a duel with two games. Whatever the result tomorrow, we know that there will be an incredible atmosphere in the return match. There will be moments when we suffer, and then we must not get nervous” -Klopp was clear.
Liverpool and Villarreal will play tonight at “Anfield” from 21:00.
