Simeone will snub ‘false’ Klopp handshake in Liverpool clash

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp should not expect a post-match handshake from Diego Simeone at Anfield on Wednesday as the Atletico Madrid boss believes they are ‘false’.

After his side’s 3-2 win over Atletico at the Wanda Metropolitano a fortnight ago, the Reds boss could only watch on as his opposite number darted down the tunnel at the final whistle without any acknowledgement.

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Klopp was initially annoyed but later played down any long-lasting tension.

When asked about the incident by Sky Sports, Klopp said: “The situation is clear, I wanted to shake his hand and he didn’t want to. His reaction was for sure not right and mine was not too good as well.

“But we are both emotional so when we see each other next time we will shake hands definitely and it’s like nothing happened.

“He was obviously angry not with me, but with the game, the world and it’s nothing else.”

And Simeone has insisted he respects the quality of Klopp, but says post-match pleasantries are just not something he wants to be involved in.

“I don’t like the greeting after the match because they are the emotions of two sides in different emotional minds,” he said.

“I know in the UK it is a custom but I don’t share it and I don’t like the falseness it may include.

“I don’t know Klopp as a person very well but I know he is a great coach who has done great work at every club he has been at.”

Liverpool lead group B with three wins from three with Atletico five point behind in second place.

Klopp will be expecting another tough test against the La Liga giants after their “dirty three points” against them in the return fixture.

“We still had to defend with all we had because even with 10 men they were quite intense to play,” Klopp said after the game in Madrid.

“But the dirty three points are very often the most important, and they were dirty tonight of course. It was not our best football but we got them and that’s a big step.

“When these two teams face each other then some drama I would say is guaranteed. Both teams are proper fighting units, are used to fighting for the things they want to reach.”