Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp warned defending champions Real Madrid his team would be ‘on fire’ in the Champions League final.
The Premier League side booked their spot in the Kiev decider with a 7-6 aggregate win over Roma, despite suffering a 4-2 loss at the Stadio Olimpico on Wednesday.
But they face a huge test in the final on 26 May, with two-time reigning champions Madrid – who have reached the decider four times in five seasons – awaiting them.
Klopp knows just how much experience Madrid have, but he believes his team will be at their best.
‘Going to a final is really nice. I did it a few times but winning it is even nicer. We will be ready,’ he said.
‘You cannot be more experienced in the competition than Real Madrid. I think pretty much 80% of the team played all these finals four times in the last five years and they are still together.
‘So if we talk about experience, they are experienced and we are not. But we will be really on fire, you can imagine.
‘We are looking forward to it but before that, we have to play two more Champions League semi-finals in the Premier League. That is first of all the job to do.
‘Then we’ll have two weeks to prepare for the final and we will use that time.’
Klopp will hope his own record in cup finals is improved, with the German having lost five of six during his time as a manager.
The former Borussia Dortmund coach said his team still had work to do, wanting to avoid another defeat.
‘Look, we were in the League Cup final and we didn’t win it. People don’t tell me in the street since then, “Thank you for bringing us to the final”,’ Klopp said.
‘We were in the Europa League final. I didn’t see any trophies after these games.
‘They don’t hang silver medals at Melwood. That’s the pity, that’s the game. So there’s still a job to do but that’s how it is.’