Brighton manager Roberto De Zerbi insists Jurgen Klopp is still one of the best coaches in the world despite Liverpool's drastic drop-off in form this season.
The Reds travel to the South Coast on Sunday afternoon to lock horns with the Seagulls for the second time in 2023 and two weeks after their 3-0 drubbing at the Amex. However, this time Klopp's men will make the long-haul journey to Brighton in the second stage of their FA Cup defence - which they won for a ninth time after beating Chelsea on penalties at Wembley last May.
Goals from Solly March and Danny Welbeck condemned the Reds to a humbling defeat earlier this month - a sixth of the Premier League campaign - which the Liverpool manager later described as the "worst" game of his managerial career ahead of reaching the impressive 1,000-game milestone.
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But speaking ahead of Sunday's fourth round clash, De Zerbi claims Brighton are not the favourites to progress to the fifth round and lauded the quality of the Reds and their manager.
“No," responded the Italian when asked if his side are the favourites. "The table is how it is, but Liverpool are always a big team. It will be a different game [to the Premier League game], but also the last game was difficult. It always is against Liverpool. We need to make the conditions right to win the game, we can play better than we did against Leicester.
“Jurgen Klopp is one of the best coaches in the world. His history reflects that, I have big respect for him. I know Liverpool are a big team, we have a lot of respect for them. But we would like to repeat if it’s possible, if we play like the last game.”
De Zerbi added: “We would like to reach the next step of the FA Cup. We know the game will be very difficult, we would like to play a brave game, to try to win."
Liverpool will continue to be without Virgil van Dijk, Roberto Firmino and Diogo Jota for the tie, with Klopp confirming that the trio are a "couple of weeks" away from a return. Luis Diaz, meanwhile, is expected to remain on the sidelines for longer than his peers.
Fabio Carvalho will also be unavailable for selection on the south coast after picking up a knock during the week.
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