Klopp cares about EFL Cup

Jurgen Klopp has called on his team to give 100 per cent as the look to reach the final of the EFL Cup.

Liverpool trail Southampton 1-0 heading into Wednesday's semi-final second-leg but the Reds will be looking to make home advantage count as they bid to overturn the deficit.

Klopp guided the Reds to the final of the competition in his first season in charge but he agonisingly missed out on the trophy as his side lost 3-1 on penalties to Manchester City and the German is eager to make amends this time, insisting Liverpool are the only club genuinely interested in the competition.

“I expect 100 per cent from us. I expect 100 per cent from the crowd," Klopp told his pre-match press conference. “Southampton is in a good run at this moment. Good results. But we want to go to the final too.

“I like this competition because we are the only team who, since I came in, have played every Capital One Cup game.

“From outside viewing, it looks like they press the cup in between the season. It looks like no-one cares about it.

“Nobody cares about this competition… but we do.”

Liverpool's Premier League title ambitions took a knock on Saturday when they were beaten 3-2 by Swansea but Klopp insists the result will not have any bearing on how his team prepare for Wednesday's game.

“I never thought about priorities because we always think about the next game. It’s now Capital One Cup, then FA Cup, then Premier League [because that’s the order]," Klopp said.

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