Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp says he was close to calling into talkSPORT to call out pundit Gabby Agbonlahor for his criticism of Manchester United during their 4-0 defeat to Brentford last weekend.
Erik ten Hag's side have lost their opening two matches of the Premier League season and matters were made worse last Saturday as they found themselves 4-0 down to the London club at half-time. The former Aston Villa forward phoned into talkSPORT with a scathing review of United.
“This is not Manchester United,” Agbonlahor said last weekend. “If I was them now after this game I’d be thinking, ‘You know what, Ten Hag, just pack up’. He’s had pre-season and they have started the season as a shambles, they’re like strangers on the pitch.
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“They’re just not good enough, it's amateur from Manchester United. I’ve been hammering them and people are saying I’ve got an agenda against Manchester United – no, I’m speaking facts that real Manchester United fans will agree with. You’re just not the same Manchester United that you used to be."
Klopp has now admitted he nearly phoned in to the radio station to question the pundits' view. The Liverpool boss also referenced his side's 6-0 win against Villa back in February 2016, a game in which Agbonlahor played almost an hour of.
"It was obviously not nice for United after the Brentford game," Klopp said in his pre-United press conference. "We forget in these moments how good Brentford are, to be honest. I watched the first-half here then I drove home and listened to talkSPORT.
"Gabby Agbonlahor, he lost against us 6-0 in my first year (at Liverpool), I couldn't remember him as a mentality monster on the pitch (that day). What he said about United on that show, I was close to calling in! I was to calling in and telling him you forgot completely you were a player, it was unbelievable.
"If ex players go already like this then you can imagine how everything else is going. You just have to ask yourself how you would want to react in a situation like this. They will want to fight back, that's completely normal and it's what we expect."
Liverpool themselves have had a disappointing start to the season with no win in their first two games. With a trip to Old Trafford on Monday night, both teams will be hoping to get their campaigns up and running with a much-needed win.
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