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Jurgen Klopp talks transfers and future

SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 19: Jurgen Klopp, Manager of Liverpool looks on during the Premier League match between Southampton and Liverpool at St Mar

Has Jurgen Klopp got plans to strengthen his Liverpool squad in January, and does he sees his long-term future at Anfield?

Those were just two of the questions posed to Klopp in a Sky Sports Facebook Live special, in which the German answered fan questions ahead of Liverpool's eagerly-anticipated clash with Manchester United on Super Sunday.

Live Nissan Super Sunday

Understandably, the Merseysiders' trip to Old Trafford took centre stage but it didn't dominate the agenda as Liverpool fans took up the rare chance to quiz their manager on potential signings and his long-term aspirations at the club...

Hi Jurgen! Our squad seems to be wearing thin, especially in comparison to the other teams in the top five. Do you think you need to bring any more players in this month?

KLOPP SAYS: That’s really difficult. If you tell us the right player is available for us we would do it. I’m 100 per cent convinced that you should only do things in the winter that you would do in the summer. Everything else solves a problem for a second and a few days later you have another problem.

You cannot get any player, this team is too strong, this squad is too strong, we need players that make us better. Of course sometimes in the season you have hard moments, we have not been that lucky with injuries, losing important players in the wrong moment. That didn’t help but we have to go through it. We could have had more players from the beginning of the season but we have not, that is a success. It is all about the group and this group is really good together.

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Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp insists Manchester United are a much better side than when the two sides met in October

Of course there are different ways to go, different ways in which to plan a season. We had no international football, a fact we couldn’t ignore. But for sure a lot of things will happen in the summer, of course, to strengthen our squad. But, in this moment, if there is the right player and we can get him we will do it, if not, it makes no sense.

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Jurgen, you’ve always given young players a chance and nurtured them into good players but your rivals in the transfer market don’t. How difficult is it to balance that and is it high time we signed a ready-made, world-class player to compete with them?

KLOPP SAYS: I don’t know. If we have the right player and he is already world-class then why not, that’s absolutely no problem. But then if he is injured then you have another problem. It’s not that simple. One player cannot make the difference - in one match they can but over the long term they can’t because they are human beings. That’s how I understand football.

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Danny Higginbotham examines three key tactical areas where Manchester United v Liverpool could be won or lost

You need to get better and better as a group, I think we have improved a lot. English football is especially obsessed with transfers. We are always looking for the right players, not just somebody, that’s the most important information. As I’ve said all has been good until now. In our current situation, if I’d have had three more players that wouldn’t make things easier.

Believing in young players and giving them the opportunity to play and perform is not a new idea. It makes absolute sense. We know our responsibility to be successful immediately but we cannot ignore this next season or the season after. We all feel in a good way.

I recognise everybody is already afraid of us not being good enough to be the champions again. But we never said it needed to be this year or it will never happen. When I signed, particularly my extension, it was clear we will try with all we have but not only once. We will do it again and again and again and we already have to prepare these seasons too. That’s what we are doing with the young players too, if we can use them now we do it and if not they train until we use them.

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Jeff Stelling and Paul Merson discuss Super Sunday's Merseyside vs Manchester as Everton host Man City while Liverpool travel to Man Utd

What is your opinion for the need of a left-back, considering how well James Milner has done?

KLOPP SAYS: I don’t only have to convince myself, I have to convince a few more people about the Milner’s quality. The left leg being the strongest is the one thing that is not very important. What is important is that you are able to play football, that you have the attitude and ability to defend and that you can play in different and small spaces because very often the left-back gets a pass when the centre-back has nowhere to go, so you need to be able to cope with things like this.

You need to because we don’t have a lot of other wingers, that means you need to be really fit to make long runs. You need to be quick and fit. There are a lot of things to do but it depends on the style you want to play. We are a dominant side, crosses are important but I don’t care if they come from a right foot, from the left side or a left foot from the right.

Liverpool's German head coach Jurgen Klopp (R) shakes hands with Liverpool's English midfielder James Milner after the UEFA Europe League quarter-final, fi
Image: Klopp is pleased with James Milner's progress at left-back

It’s not only Milner, Alberto Moreno is doing outstanding work. He played for the first time in a while against Plymouth and you could see he was not in a rhythm, but that was more my fault than his. His attitude and how he takes the situation, especially in training, is really good.

We need these players to be ready for the moment and that’s why they need the game-time when we have the opportunity to give them games. The group which played against Plymouth trained and you could already see how good it was for them to be part of this experience, you could see the players, especially the young guys, had taken another step.

In an ideal world, do you see your long-term future at Liverpool (five years or more) or do you have a set plan to move on the other leagues after winning trophies here?

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Sunderland 2-2 Liverpool

KLOPP SAYS: No, I don’t have (a plan). I feel really happy here, I feel good here. It was clear decision for Liverpool, I’m not signing a contract because I have nothing else to do. We are in the perfect place at the moment, that is how we all feel, and that’s why we did it (the extension). There are no long-term plans.

Watch Merseyside v Manchester – Everton v Man City followed by Man Utd v Liverpool - on Super Sunday from 12.30pm, Sky Sports 1 HD. Sky Q 2TB customers can watch the game in Ultra HD. Visit skysports.com/uhd for details.

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