'He said we'd stay in contact' - Union Saint-Gilloise boss makes Jurgen Klopp transfer admission before Liverpool clash
Union Saint-Gilloise boss Alexander Blessin was speaking before his side's Europa League encounter against Liverpool at Anfield
Union Saint-Gilloise boss Alexander Blessin has explained how he was almost signed by Jurgen Klopp – and has warned Liverpool his players have nothing to lose as they eye a European shock.
The Reds entertain the Belgian league leaders in their second Europa League group game at Anfield on Thursday evening. Union, who drew 1-1 at home to Toulouse in their group opener a fortnight ago, have lost only two of 12 games in all competitions this season and have won their last three outings.
And boss Blessin, who briefly came up against Klopp during their playing days, has revealed how he was targeted shortly after his fellow German took over in charge at Mainz.
“There was a time when he was a player and then he became the coach at Mainz and he was planning his new squad,” said Blessin. “He called me and asked, ‘how are you, fine, blah blah blah’, and we knew each other there a little bit.
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“He said we’d stay in contact and I never heard anything back! I think it was a few years ago when I was with him at a benefit game and then we had smalltalk. It’s not like we know each other really well. This is the only thing I can say about it.”
Of playing at Anfield, Blessin admitted: “It’s a big thing. I am smiling over my whole face, so it’s nice to play here. When I saw the players taking photos earlier, I took some photos and it’s amazing to be in the stadium and to play in this stadium. We will do our best to show a good performance.
“We know the quality of the Liverpool team, we don’t have to speak about that. It’s amazing and to have this feeling tomorrow will be a nice thing.
“I hope that we show courage and our quality and don’t think, ‘oh we can lose here’. There’s nothing for us to lose. It’s a highlight game and we have to enjoy it. This is a really big thing for us, for sure. They guys deserve this. I’m convinced we can put in a good performance. It’s something special.”
Union are unbeaten in their last six away games in European competition and reached the quarter-finals of the Europa League last season before being eliminated by Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen.
And when asked if his team could pull off a surprise win at Anfield, Blessin said: “You need always two situations in the game. We need a really perfect day and they need a bad day. When these two things come together then we have a chance. We will do everything and aren’t here just drinking coffee saying ‘oh, it’s nice’, we want to take something and show our quality.
“I think Liverpool will change some players to give regular starting XI players a break, but we’ll see. The delivery of set-pieces and corners can be a weapon, for sure. When you talk about 90 minutes and an intense game, it always depends on how your structure is and how you use momentum.
“How we have played in the last few games means we come here with confidence, but we need a really perfect day.”
UNION PREDICTED LINE-UP (3-4-3): Moris; Mac Allister, Burgess, Machida; Vanhoutte, Sadiki, Castro-Montes, Lapoussi; Puertas, Lazare, Rodriguez.