Jurgen Klopp has admitted he was angry with himself after seeing Ajax pick up Dusan Tadic.
Serbian international Tadic joined the Dutch side in 2018 and helped them reach the semi-finals of the Champions League in his first season back in the Eredivisie. Before then, though, he caught the eye of Klopp while playing with former Liverpool star Sadio Mane at Southampton.
Tadic, who spent time with Groningen and Twente earlier in his career, captained Ajax at Anfield in September as Alfred Schreuder's side suffered a last-gasp defeat. The Dutch champions need to win the reverse fixture in Amsterdam to stand any chance of still being in the Champions League in the new year.
'I was very angry with myself when he went to Ajax , because I was also interested in him," Klopp told Dutch broadcaster RTL (via Ajax Showtime ). "I love him as a player".
Tadic has scored 94 goals in 209 appearances for Ajax since joining from Southampton in 2018. Some 19 of those goals have come in Europe, including efforts against the likes of Bayern Munich and Real Madrid in the Champions League, though he has yet to find the net in this season's competition.
Joel Matip's late goal on Merseyside means Liverpool sit six points clear of Ajax with two games remaining. However, with the Reds facing a Napoli side with a 100 per cent record in their last game, Klopp's team will want to get the job done on Wednesday night.
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Klopp was also asked whether he felt Ajax were going into the midweek game as underdogs, having recognised they are a team in transition after losing Lisandro Martinez, Antony and others in the summer. He didn't see things that way, though.
"Yes, we won the home game, but we respect what they do," the former Borussia Dortmund manager said. "They have a great bunch of players and it might take time for it to click the way you'd like, but that's normal in football.
"Ajax has a great team and a top manager, so it will be tricky . I don't see an underdog role for this match," he added. Klopp explained he has heard good things about his opposite number Schreuder, who arrived over the summer after Erik ten Hag left for Manchester United.
Liverpool and Ajax have been drawn together just once before in the Champions League era, facing off in the 2020-21 group stages. On that occasion, Klopp's team won the home and away games by a single goal, with Curtis Jones - who returned to the Reds' starting line-up on Saturday after some time out injured - scoring the winner in the Anfield clash.
