Jurgen Klopp has urged Liverpool fans to join in paying their respects to Queen Elizabeth II before tonight’s clash against Ajax.
The Reds kick off their second game of the Champions League this evening, looking to bounce back from last week’s 4-1 defeat at Napoli. Anfield will host a minute's silence before the game as the football world remembers the Queen, who passed away on Thursday afternoon - while the players will also wear black armbands.
Liverpool boss Klopp said during his press conference that he is confident those in the stands will respect the gesture - as they did with applause following the tragic death of Cristiano Ronaldo’s son - and has again urged fans to show their support tonight.
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“The events that surround tonight’s game means the occasion will be different to what we have become used to on European nights at Anfield,” Klopp wrote in tonight’s programme notes. “The loss of Queen Elizabeth II is a significant moment for the country and an incredibly sad moment for her family and all who cherished her, so playing football against this backdrop gives everyone involved a different kind of responsibility.
“As a club, we always take these responsibilities very seriously because it is the right thing to do. At the time of writing these notes it is too early to say what the gestures of respect will be, but whatever they are we will observe them as we always have.
“I can say this from my own first-hand knowledge: whenever anyone suffers a personal loss, the support you receive makes such a difference, so if it feels this way when you need it, it makes sense that we should provide it when someone else has the same need.
“On an occasion like this one, how we conduct ourselves matters and so do the words that we say, so I would like to take this opportunity to pass on our condolences to everyone who has been affected by the death of the Queen, particularly her own family who clearly had an incredible amount of love for her as a mother, a grandmother and a great-grandmother.”
After the Napoli defeat, Klopp spoke of needing to re-invent a team that had forgotten how to do the basics. The Reds boss acknowledged that his side failed to remain compact and apply pressure in midfield, exposing the usually successful high-line, and he has reiterated the urgency with which his players need to return to the basics of what made them so difficult to play under Klopp.
“After the game I used the word ‘compact’ a lot,” The German added in his notes. “I actually said it more times than I could count. This was because the gaps were too big with and without the ball and this makes no sense, not if we want to be the best that we can be anyway.
“I know everyone focuses on the goals, the stories and the big moments, but being hard to play against and hard to beat has been at the heart of everything we have done over the last few seasons, so it would make sense if we could get back to being this way.
“The basics of football are a big part of this. Defending together, attacking together, winning challenges, competing, stopping your opponent from doing what they want to do. A lot of these qualities would not get their own showreel but they are absolutely vital if you want to win football matches.
“The boys have been absolutely brilliant at this and that should not be forgotten, but at the same time we have to acknowledge that right now there is room for improvement.”
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