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3rd May 2024
11:32am BST
It's the worst-kept secret in the world, but Jurgen Klopp doesn't like 12:30 kick offs.
In fact, he hates them that much that he feels the need to tell us every single week.
The Liverpool boss has voiced his displeasure at Liverpool being handed early kick offs for the majority of his nine years in charge but despite the Reds having no more early kick offs this season, couldn't resist a parting shot at TNT Sports.
Klopp declared that he would never watch the channel again and asked to be removed from their subscribers before joking that Amnesty International should've been contacted as 12:30 Saturday kick offs are a crime and claimed his side have had the fastest turnaround of matches in the global game.
A reminder that a non-league side played six games in nine days recently.
"I watch a lot of football all over the world, the Premier League is the best league in the world. So it’s not overrated. The players are over-worked. Easy as that. You can talk about that until everybody realises finally, but somebody needs to help the people," Klopp exclaimed.
"I had a discussion only the other day with colleagues from our favourite TV channel which I will definitely not watch again, TNT, and said it’s always a conversation they have, saying they pay you, they give money to football. It’s not like that. I really don’t see it like that. It’s exactly the other way round, football pays them. They broadcast it, they deliver, but it’s not that TNT is not doing extremely well, or Sky or whoever, is doing extremely well.
"They can pay all of you, it’s all fine. You have to become a part of football again, and not just the squeezer. That’s it, that’s a little advice from an old man on the way out. I will watch a lot of football, but not all because people can survive without match days from time to time, definitely."
Aston Villa are the only Premier League side left in a European competition but their 4-2 defeat at home to Olympiacos on Thursday leaves them on the brink of a major exit and Klopp believes that the lack of progression from English sides this season is due to the congested fixture list.
He explained: "[Manchester] City and Arsenal, they are out in the quarter-finals, this is just not a reflection of quality. It’s just a reflection of we could not deliver on the day we had to. Yes, other countries have really good teams, no doubt about that, but it’s a sign. Years ago I think we had four English teams in quarter-finals. And then we take that and say, ‘Yeah, it’s the quality of the Premier League and let’s make more of it.’ But we have to change that approach, that’s how it is. You always think when I speak about it, it’s because of our last situation.
"We didn’t lose against West Ham. But because of the last game. No, it’s a general problem. Nothing to do with our schedule now. That they dare give Thursday, Sunday, Wednesday, Saturday 12.30 is a crime. I was actually waiting for Amnesty International to go to them. Somebody sits there - you love this press conference - so just somebody sits there and decides there. I would like to meet, I would like to once be part of that meeting where somebody says, ‘Liverpool 12.30’, and the whole room is bursting into laughter. ‘Again?!’ I would like to be there.
"This morning I got sent the stats of the biggest turnaround in the whole world. Liverpool FC, yeah (laughs). And we sit there, and I’m the same. I tell you, ‘You have to do more, you have to fight more, and you have to go for it.’ In a whole world, we have the quickest turnaround between games. That is absolutely insane. But they are still happy and they like subscribers. You can take me off that list! But if you’re looking for a pundit, I speak English! I could do it."
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