In an interview with Belgian Radio station Sporza, Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet talked about Liverpool’s ambitions ahead of the Europa League Quarter Final tie against Borussia Dortmund. When asked about Jurgen Klopp’s return to the German club where he made his name, Mignolet replied:
“It is not only special for him. It’s a nice game for both teams. Everyone knows that there is a unique atmosphere in Dortmund. As a player and football fan, it’s a game to look forward to. It is not because Klopp has been a coach there that we suddenly more know about them. We know that in any case this is a difficult game. There are only strong teams left in the Europa League and Dortmund is perhaps the strongest team left in the competition. Yet it is not a disadvantage to take them on now. We have two games to try to beat them.”
Mignolet believes that the Reds should not prioritise the Europa League as they are a big club and should look to finish as high up in the Premier League as possible:
“We try to get a result in Dortmund and finish it at home. Every game we play, we want to win. Thursday will no no different. We are fighting on two fronts, and we also want to show something in the Premier League. The goal of Liverpool in the short term is to become a top team, both domestically and in Europe. Therefore we have to start winning against teams like Dortmund, but also few days later against Stoke too.”
When asked about fellow Belgian Christian Benteke, Mignolet said:
“He has character and he has showed us all that he can come back in the past and that he can deal with adversity. I am sure he will soon be fit again. Let’s hope he is there when we need him.”
The 28 year old was then asked about the remarkable story of Leicester City and their rise to the top of the table:
“They are obviously in pole position. But in the Premier League you never know. They have to play a number of games. Anything can still happen with many twists and turns. We saw that already in the past and already this season. Every Premier League game is exciting. You never know in advance who will grab the three points.”
The Belgian international goalkeeper has been inconsistent this season, much like the Reds have been in general. He made some good saves against Spurs at the weekend especially from Christian Eriksen’s long range effort to keep the score at 1-1. He will be hoping for a similar display against Dortmund on Thursday night.
