Red Bull Salzburg coach Jesse Marsch certainly has history when it comes to Liverpool and Anfield.
When the American was just 16, he visited the famous stadium and grabbed himself a handful of dirt from the pitch. That handful of dirt was bagged up and is now sitting pretty at home.
Marsch is now 45, and the young coach is most notable for being the first American to coach in and win a UEFA Champions League game.
He must be having some interesting thoughts now, as he’s about to line up against Jurgen Klopp, but it’s an opportunity he is relishing.
“My first professional game was at Anfield. I was 16 — we were at a schoolboys tournament,” Marsh said Monday during an appearance on SiriusXM FC’s The Football Show (via Pro Soccer USA).
“We were about to go to a game there, and after the game I snuck down by the pitch and I grabbed a handful of dirt and put it in my pocket. I still have that today in a baggy in my house.”
But it’s not all about nostalgia for the coach, as he knows it’s going to be one of the toughest games of his career thus far.
Marsh is hoping that his players will also remember how to deal with Sadio Mane from their training sessions together a number of years ago.
“[My players] know [Mane’s] qualities. They know everything about him, but regardless, they also know how dangerous he is and how he can make a play in a flash,” he added.
“It is a team when you try to find the weak points it is almost impossible, but you just try to hedge things a little bit with a tactical plan.”