Jurgen Klopp relieved Liverpool’s showdown with Real Madrid in Champions League didn’t come last month

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp says he is relieved to be facing Real Madrid now rather than a month ago after a recent upturn in his side’s form ahead of the Champions League showdown.

The Reds face the reigning European and world champions in a repeat of last season’s final on Tuesday at Anfield in the first leg of their last 16 tie.

“I’m really happy we can play now, four weeks ago it would have been different, but life is all about timing,” Klopp said.

“Maybe we’ve found our feet right in time for this game, even though I would have expected us to be ourselves if we hadn’t won the last two games, because it’s a different competition and you have to use this opportunity.

“We have these two results and hopefully we can build on that, but we need to play a super game. We need to play two super games, to be honest, to get through.

“I have no problem with that because if you don’t play your best, you don’t have a chance – Real Madrid don’t have to play their best and still have a chance! That’s the difference. That’s pretty special. I can’t wait.”

The 2022 final in Paris went the way of the Madrid club thanks to a goal from Vinicius Junior that sealed a 1-0 win for the Spaniards at the Stade de France.

Klopp revealed that “there is a chance” Darwin Nunez could feature despite being substituted with a shoulder injury during Saturday’s Premier League win over Newcastle.

He also explained how he has now gone through the painful experience of re-watching last year’s final – as well as their 3-1 aggregate defeat to Real in the 2020/21 quarter-finals.

“I didn’t watch it back until this weekend. The thing I realised immediately was why I didn’t watch it back but I had to – it was proper torture,” said the German.

“We played a good game and could have won the game. They scored a decisive goal and we didn’t, and that was the reason.

“You could see how experienced Madrid is, how little they are fussed when the other team has chances, they don’t lose confidence, they know their chance will come.

“This is that team, the competition and you can learn from them, definitely. But that’s six, eight months ago.

“Before that [in 2020/21], we played there on the training ground and here in an empty stadium. Here, it was a really good 0-0, we let them work hard and that was good.

“But this is now, same clubs, different teams, different times. There’s a history in the last few years.

“One of us was always in the final, that’s how it feels at least, and usually if you go to the final you have to kick us out or them, this time we play each other, let’s see who goes through.”

Liverpool came second in Group A, behind Napoli but ahead of Ajax and Rangers, to reach this stage, while Real Madrid topped Group F ahead of RB Leipzig, Shakhtar Donetsk and Celtic.