Jurgen Klopp says he is unconcerned about his Anfield legacy as he aims to kick-start Liverpool's failing season at Brighton in the FA Cup on Sunday.
Klopp has won every top-level trophy available to the Reds during his time on Merseyside, lifting the Champions League, Premier League and the Club World Cup prior to last season's FA and Carabao Cup double.
Klopp has also overseen victories in the UEFA Super Cup and Community Shield during that time but the Reds' fortunes have dipped significantly this term having taken just 29 Premier League points at the halfway stage of the campaign. That poor return leaves them 10 points adrift of the top four and a whopping 21 behind league leaders Arsenal.
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Ahead of Sunday's fourth-round trip to Brighton, Klopp was asked if it was important to furnish his legacy further before he walks away from the club - and while the Liverpool boss says it is important for the long-term, he is not thinking about anything other than turning around a frustrating season to date.
"Is winning more trophies important? Yes. Can I promise it? No. Oh my God, without ever meeting Bill Shankly or Bob Paisley ever, I love them to bits," Klopp said. "But there are a few things from their perspective that were easy to say and every now and then you throw it at me, eh?
"'Second place is nowhere blah blah blah' That was in our dressing room at Melwood. Thank you very much but I was more often than not second place in my life anyway but I am here anyway!
"So if you look back in 20 years, people will say about this team they will say 'wow, what a time!' When they talk about this season so far we haven't given them a lot of reasons [to look back] but we're still in two cup competitions and we don't give up in the league. Why should we? We have to make steps and there are a lot of games to play.
"I cannot sit here like we have won them already but we go in positive and we fight, it's hard but we make the next steps, extend out good spells and be ourselves for much longer in games and that is what we'll do. We will see where we end."
Klopp added: "Legacy? 10 years or 20 years, we will look back and say we enjoyed it, yes it was great. All the finals, great, it was close. My god how close was it to being champions too and all that stuff. But who cares about that now?
"I couldn't care less now. I cannot. I don't think for a second that we won the Champions League [in 2019], it doesn't feel like it. In a few years, I will think about it again and we want to win it again, of course. Does it look like we will smash Real Madrid at the moment [in the last-16]? Maybe not but it's a competition we are good in and in a few weeks we will be ready for that 100%
"The tough stuff here is to explain something which is not very positive. No-one wants to have those conversations because they sound like excuses. I don't go for excuses but it sounds like it. Yes, others do well and I respect that a lot but we want to beat them anyway, so we will see how we go on Sunday."
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