Jose Mourinho has said that he’s “not a friend” of Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp ahead of Tottenham Hotspur’s clash with the Premier League champions this week.
Spurs are looking really good this season and the Reds are a shadow of their former selves at the minute, so the heavyweight fixture will certainly be special.
Speaking ahead of the clash in the capital, Mourinho said that he’s not Klopp’s friend – but that isn’t to say he dislikes the Liverpool boss.
“I’m not a friend of Jurgen because I never had time with Jurgen,” the 58-year-old is quoted as saying by GOAL. “When you know the person well you can say, ‘I like him, he’s my friend’ or ‘I don’t like him, he’s not my friend‘.
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“With Jurgen it’s five minutes before a match and five minutes after a match. What I can say about Jurgen is that he’s a colleague that I respect, that I don’t have any problem with.
“And I believe that he is the same way with me. No problems at all.”
Famously, when the German first rocked up at Anfield he was asked what he would like to be called as the then Chelsea boss is nicknamed ‘The Special One’ – and Klopp responded by saying he’s ‘The Normal One’.
Despite there being almost no talk of a rivalry between them, the duo have been two of the most prominent managers on the global football stage with mixed fortunes.