Klopp wary of motivated Bayern stars following Germany axing

The Liverpool boss believes that Mats Hummels and Jerome Boateng will have extra motivation in Wednesday’s Champions League clash

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Jurgen Klopp believes Joachim Low has done Liverpool no favours by axing a trio of Bayern Munich players from the German national team.

Low’s decision to inform Mats Hummels, Jerome Boateng and Thomas Muller, World Cup winners with 246 caps between them, that they would no longer be considered for international selection remains one of the big talking points in Germany.

Muller is suspended for Wednesday’s Champions League clash against Liverpool at the Allianz Arena, but Hummels and Boateng are set to start at the heart of the Bayern defence.

And Klopp believes the experienced duo will be out to prove a point in such a high-profile fixture.

He said: “The only possibility for me is to think about how I’d react. I was never in contention for the national team but if something like this happened to you when you are young, fit and healthy then I think I would try to show it was a mistake.

“I know that all three would love to play for Germany, that’s how it is. With all the decisions a manager has to make, it’s always 50/50 – some like them, some don’t like them. The difference between a national coach and a club coach is if I say to a player here that he cannot play anymore then he can look for another club. In this case you cannot look for another country!

“I don’t know the reasons exactly 100 per cent but what I would say is it is difficult to take the opportunity away for a player to qualify for a national team. I didn’t hear about a lot of similar situations.

“A centre-half at 30 years is nothing, so age cannot really be a reason. Other reasons, I don’t know. If you are a player and you don’t really retire by yourself there should still be an opportunity to qualify for the national team. That’s my opinion but I am not in the situation.

“If you tell a player, ‘You stay at home, I don’t invite you – I am not happy with your performances’ or whatever, then that’s the 100 per cent right of the national team. But if it is ‘Whatever you do, it won’t be enough to be in the national team again’ it’s not like it should sound.”

Bayern are expected to hand left-back David Alaba a recall for tomorrow’s game, with the Austrian, who has missed the last two games with a tendon issue, involved in their final training session at Sabener Strasse on Tuesday.

Kingsley Coman, who has been nursing a muscle problem, also trained and will be in consideration for Kovac, who is without both Muller and Joshua Kimmich due to suspension.