Before the final that will decide the champion of the 150th edition of the FA Cup, Jürgen Klopp spoke at a press conference, where he reviewed the news of Liverpool, also immersed in the race for the Premier League and two weeks from the League final of Champions, which will face Real Madrid. Regarding the final in Paris, the German coach confirmed that he will be able to count on his midfielder, Fabinho Tavares, who suffered a hamstring injury this week.
Fabinho: “He will definitely be in the Champions League final.”
The role of the other midfielders while Fabinho is out: “It’s a very important role. If these guys hadn’t shown the attitude that they had in practice (Ox, Elliott, Jones), then we wouldn’t have a chance.”
The new format of the Champions: “More games is always a bad idea. I’ve talked about it a lot. Obviously no one is interested, so… okay, I didn’t have time to hear all the details. I’ve heard a bit about it, but it’s really not the time to form an opinion.
Response to the UEFA president on the distribution of tickets in the Champions League final: “He texted me back. I said what I said, they should be more for the fans. 93% of the money goes to the clubs… I wrote back and said OK. I wasn’t prepared enough for this thing but I have a opinion. I would prefer that UEFA get more money from the Champions League final and eliminate the Nations League.”
On the Carabao Cup final, which Liverpool won: “We didn’t beat Chelsea, we won the ‘shootout’. I’ve said a few times without luck you have no chance and luck was on our side that day. We know how good Chelsea are. Both teams will go for it.”
Enthusiasm for the FA Cup and for his absence in the finals of the previous seasons: “We’re really looking forward to this opportunity. Now it’s a big final for us and I’m really happy we’re part of it. We’ve always given everything to get to the final, but we just didn’t make it. What’s clear when you start a journey is that you can’t have it all we didn’t have the team to go for it all [los trofeos]. It was never that we didn’t want to go to the final, we just didn’t have the power to do it. I don’t think we’ve had much luck with our draws, we had really tough draws.”
Chelsea as a threat: “It’s a completely different game. [al de Carabao Cup]. Chelsea is a very well-coached team, I have to say. They have an idea for all areas of the game. They are organized defensively. We have no idea how Thomas will line up, there are so many options… they have a similar system to the others but on a different level.”
The history of the FA Cup: “It’s the biggest domestic cup in the world. I haven’t seen 20 FA Cup finals, but I don’t think that’s necessary to understand how big it is.”
Multiple trophies in contention: “When you go for three or four trophies, it’s clear whether you get it or not. It’s a very busy season, but the FA Cup will never be a normal game. It’s a special game and, for some, the most important of their career. We want to enjoy it and give ourselves to our people.”