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Thursday, 28 March 2024

'You ask me this question, but fly from Madrid to here. Stay there' Klopp tells journalist on coronavirus issue

Duration: 02:21s 0 shares 1 views

'You ask me this question, but fly from Madrid to here. Stay there' Klopp tells journalist on coronavirus issue
'You ask me this question, but fly from Madrid to here. Stay there' Klopp tells journalist on coronavirus issue

Juergen Klopp responds angrily to a journalist asking him about his fear of players catching the coronavirus, questioning the reporter about why he had travelled from Madrid, a city also suffering from Covid-19.

SHOWS: LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND, UK (MARCH 10, 2020) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 1.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) REPORTER ASKING LIVERPOOL MANAGER JUERGEN KLOPP: "Go back to the coronavirus, unfortunately, it's something that we need to talk about.

We come from Spain, there's a lot of concerns about they have closed schools for 15 days, they have forbidden people to go to the stadiums, to attend to the stadiums, while La Liga still goes on, they have said not to shake hands before the game, but football is a sport of contact, physical contact.

Aren't you afraid that your players can get, you know, exposed?" KLOPP: "Are you from Madrid, are you from Madrid?" REPORTER: "I am from Argentina, I live in Madrid." KLOPP: "You live in Madrid.

OK, and you, are you concerned that in your city they close...?" REPORTER: They're not playing football tomorrow." KLOPP: "Oh, but that's not that special.

Playing football is just a game, we are not the society, we are part of the society and we should all be worried in the same time.

"And that's exactly the thing I don't like that you sit here and ask me this question, but fly from Madrid to here.

So, stay there, they close schools and universities, but you are obviously concerned, that's the question, but you think now football is worth it to travel or whatever, that's the situation.

"That's our problem, our common problem and we cannot sort it with football.

We play football, it's our part, it's what we have to do, your job is to transport information and I hope you do it better than you ask questions, to be honest, because that's the moment when I really get angry, when you give me the feeling I have a problem which you don't have.

We have all the same problem." REPORTER: "I'm not saying that." KLOPP: (Interrupting) "That's it exactly.

You said 'but I don't play football', that's only one part, you talk every day to people from close range what I don't do, so you are the same, are you worried?" REPORTER: "Let me explain myself.

What I said is there is physical contact in the sports..." KLOPP: "But the players at the moment, they are all healthy, why we should worry?

What we do with not shaking the hands is setting a sign.

It's good for you, it's good for you, it's good for me not to shake hands.

It's not important that 22 completely healthy players not shaking hands, it's a sign for society, for everybody out there.

At the moment, you set signs as well, then we are in the same boat, so that's why we do it." REPORTER: "We aren't in the same boat." KLOPP: "I'm not sure, but not so important." STORY: Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp had a strong exchange of words with a journalist from Spain over the coronavirus crisis who had asked the German if he was concerned about the players catching the virus during the game.

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday (March 10) before Liverpool's Champions League match against Atletico Madrid, Klopp questioned the reporter's reasons for travelling from Madrid, a city also affected by Covid-19, adding: "That's (coronavirus) our problem, our common problem and we cannot sort it with football.

I really get angry, when you give me the feeling I have a problem which you don't have.

We have all the same problem." Wednesday's (March 11) match is set to go ahead with fans able to attend.

(Production: Mike Brock)

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