Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp admitted he would not have wanted to be the person who told Luis Suarez that he was not starting against the Reds on Tuesday night.
The striker was named on the bench for the Champions League tie with Liverpool , despite scoring against Barcelona, another of his former sides, in his last outing.
Antoine Griezmann took Suarez ’s place in Diego Simeone’s line-up, as one of four changes from the last time the reigning La Liga champions played, prior to the international break.
However, Klopp revealed that he did not envy Simeone, when he had to deliver his team news to the 34-year-old.
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“I said already I wouldn’t pay to be a part of that meeting when Diego told him [he was on the bench],” the Liverpool boss told BT Sport.
“Who knows, it’s like this. It's a strong team. They can change five times, we can change five times,” he said when asked about the Atletico Madrid starting eleven.
“So hopefully the game is that intense that we use it, we need to, because then it’ll be a good one.”
Former Liverpool hero Suarez coming up against his old side is one of several narratives that surrounded the game, prior to kick-off.
The two clubs last met in the Champions League round of 16 in 2020, with Alvaro Morata clinching victory for Atleti with a last-minute goal in extra time at Anfield.
Jurgen Klopp responded angrily to the 3-2 defeat and criticised Simeone’s side for their style of play, saying: “I don't understand, with the quality they have, the football they play."
The German coach moved to clarify his comments in his pre-match press conference, but that did not prevent the Liverpool boss attracting the attention of the Atletico Madrid president .
“Each teacher has his booklet and ours has done very well the last times he has played against Klopp,” Enrique Cerezo told Cadena COPE .
“It’s very hard for a manager like Klopp and for a team like Liverpool that the two games we have played lately eliminated them, and a long time ago, in another UEFA knockout, we also eliminated them at home.”
The score stood at 2-2 after a wild first half, with Liverpool 2-0 up before the home side pulled it back.
