Klopp pulled old trick that’s “really off-putting” before Liverpool vs Man City

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp performed his traditional act ahead of his side’s Premier League clash with Manchester City, perhaps in a bid to unnerve Pep Guardiola’s men

Jurgen Klopp performed his trademark ritual as Liverpool and Manchester City warmed up for their blockbuster Premier League encounter on Sunday evening.

The Reds manager chose not to watch his own team’s preparations on the the Anfield turf, instead standing on the halfway line to survey the visitors performing their drills and stretches.

Klopp has made a habit of watching Liverpool’s opponents warm up in recent years, with many believing it is a tactic to pile pressure on whomever his side is facing.

The gesture is clearly effective as it has been described as “really off-putting” by players who have been on the receiving end of his glare.

Klopp’s halfway-line act made a lasting impression on former Brighton and Hove Albion striker Glenn Murray, who last year told talkSPORT : “Klopp does this thing before the game, I don’t know if anyone’s noticed it.

“So he’ll walk right up to the halfway line and stand right on the spot and he’ll just stare into the opposition half. It’s really off-putting.

“He just stands on the halfway line and just watches the opposition warm up.

“It really throws you the first time it happens because you’re like, ‘what is he doing? He’s not even looking at his own team, he’s just watching us’.

“He won’t break his view, he’ll just keep watching the whole time.”

Klopp was appointed Liverpool manager in October 2015 and he has made a point of watching opposition teams warm up since his early days in the job, leaving his assistants to take charge of the Reds’ preparations.

What do you make of Jurgen Klopp’s ritual as the teams warm up? Have your say in the comments.

The act is not just reserved for games at Anfield, either, as former Derby County forward Darren Bent confirmed the German surveyed him and his teammates before a League Cup clash at Pride Park back in 2016.

“It’s funny Glenn says that because when I was at Derby, we played Liverpool in a cup game,” said Bent.

“We were warming up and he did the exact same thing. He stood on the halfway line and watched us warm up.

“It took Nigel Pearson, who was in charge [of Derby] at the time, to go, ‘what’s going on here?’

“He walked up to Jurgen Klopp and went, ‘is everything alright?’ He said ‘yeah, yeah, yeah’ and trotted away.”

At this point, Murray chimed in by saying: “It gets all the players talking, doesn’t it? Everyone’s like, ‘what’s he looking at? What’s going on?’ He sort of gets in your head before the game starts!”