Diego Simeone explained his reluctance to shake hands after a game boiled down to his view of the gesture as embodying ‘falseness’ but was keen to emphasise his admiration for Jurgen Klopp as a coach.
The Atletico Madrid boss inspired a sarcastic response from his Liverpool counterpart in the aftermath of the Spanish outfit’s 3-2 defeat at the Wanda Metropolitano after dashing down the tunnel and avoiding Jurgen Klopp’s outstretched hand.
“As I explained after the game and I will say again now, I don’t shake hands after the game because emotions are usually different for both coaches,” the Argentine told reporters in his pre-Liverpool press conference, as reported by AS.
“In England, it is seen as being gentlemanly, but that’s an idea which I personally don’t share because I don’t like falseness and I follow my own feelings.
“I can’t comment on Klopp as a person as I don’t know him. But I do admire the magnificent coach this he is, I admire the great work he has done at all the clubs he’s worked at, but I don’t usually voice an opinion about how other teams play – never, because I have my own codes of conduct and we the coaches, between us, have to respect that that’s the way it is.”
The matter has since been resolved between the two head coaches as the Merseysiders prepare for a visit from the La Liga side at Anfield.
Evidently, more was made of the handshake snub than necessary, with it being clarified that Simeone’s avoidance of Klopp post-game wasn’t a reflection of the manager’s disappointment with a home defeat.
That having been said, it would be a shame to see interactions between managers after fixtures become a thing of the past if more were to take the Los Colchoneros coach’s point of view on the matter.
Regardless, we’ll be hoping to see both bosses put the matter to bed before a ball is kicked at L4 later on.