A look into the long-standing rivalry between Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp

PEP GUARDIOLA did not hesitate when asked last year who his toughest administrative opponent has been.

Not Alex Ferguson, Jose Mourinho or Carlo Ancelotti – although he has had some great battles with all of them.

It was, of course, Jurgen Klopp – the manager he has dealt with more than anyone else and who pushed him to new heights during their time together in England.

Asked about his reasons, Pep said: “First we faced each other a thousand million times, in Dortmund and here.

“Secondly, because he beat me a lot, and that was always a challenge to do over and over again.

“We respect each other, at least from my point of view, I respect him a lot.

“Of course we argue and I don't like being beaten by him, but he has been my biggest rival because of the number of times we played, how difficult it was and the pleasure when we beat them.”

The end of the season will bring the curtain down on one of the great rivalries of the Premier League era, following Klopp's announcement on Friday that it will be his last at Anfield.

There was Ferguson and Kenny Dalglish in the early days of the competition, then Arsene Wenger for years.

The Arsenal legend also had his clashes with Jose Mourinho during their days as manager in London.

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But Guardiola against Klopp had a bit of everything: plenty of play and breathtaking football.

They first went head-to-head in Germany, where Guardiola was in charge of Bayern Munich and regularly played against Klopp's Dortmund.

In total they have met 29 times – with the German (12) winning one more than his old sparring partner.

And Klopp is the ONLY manager his Man City counterpart has lost more times than he has won.

It is undoubtedly the City boss who has come out on top in terms of trophies, but to win many they have been pushed all the way by Liverpool.

In 2019, Liverpool had to win the last fourteen games of the season to win the league by one point on the final day.

Three years later, Ilkay Gundogan struck twice in the space of five minutes to send them back to the post on a dramatic final day.

Things may have started bubbling before the two managers took up their posts, but Liverpool and City have become one of the best rivalries in Prem history.

Their clashes – especially at Anfield – were controversial and ill-tempered.

Yet the quality of football on offer when they met was some of the best we have ever seen.

Klopp's trophy would undoubtedly be bigger, but for Guardiola their admiration is mutual.

The Kop boss said last year: “It sharpens your character when you have a rival like Pep Guardiola

“When we meet privately, which doesn't happen often, it's always great.

“I am 100 percent sure that if we meet in the future, when our careers are over, we will have a very nice time together.

But for now we are rivals! Anything can happen on the sidelines.

“I consider him the best manager in the world and I like the way his teams play. That's the best thing I can say about a coach from another team.”

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