Mario Gotze has said he finds it difficult to separate Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola as the race for the Premier League title hots up.
Manchester City edged a single point ahead of Liverpool in the table on Wednesday night with a comfortable 2-0 victory over Cardiff City at the Etihad.
The Anfield club can, however, retake the lead on Friday night when they travel to the south coast to take on Southampton.
World Cup winner Gotze has played under both managers having worked with Klopp at Borussia Dortmund and Guardiola at Bayern Munich, and he rates the pair highly.
"They are difficult to compare because they pursue different philosophies," Gotze said. "The fact is that both are extremely successful.
"I am grateful to have worked with two such outstanding coaches. I watch the games of both teams (City and Liverpool) as often as possible, the title fight in the Premier League is extremely exciting."
The 26-year-old said he keeps in touch with both managers but he is in contact with Klopp far more frequently than he is with Guardiola.
“When I see Pep, we always talk to each other," Gotze added. "But I have regular exchanges with Kloppo. He brought me to the professionals at the age of 17 and made everything possible for me. Our contact is never broken.”
Gotze clearly has a warmer relationship with Klopp than he does with Guardiola and that is evidenced by comments he made in a documentary last year.
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"Pep Guardiola was technically one of the best coaches, a tremendous enrichment. But I had the feeling that he thinks only in the grid and leaves out the people and the outside," Gotze explained during the DAZN documentary 'Being Mario Gotze'.
"The empathy was not that big. It was not easy for me, just because I came from Kloppo, who was like a footballing father.
"Pep was a complete difference. A world-class coach needs empathy, every athlete is also human and you should combine both."
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