Borussia Dortmund defender Mats Hummels says his side are desperate to beat former manager Jurgen Klopp when they face Liverpool in the Europa League.
Klopp, who arrived at Anfield to replace Brendan Rodgers in October, was handed a return to Dortmund — where he won two Bundesliga titles and reached the 2013 Champions League final — for the quarterfinals of the competition.
Hummels, however, says there will be no room for sentiment once the game gets going.
“The tie with Liverpool is one where we are simply desperate to beat Klopp. We have to beat him,” Hummels told ZDF. “Of course, he will get a warm welcome and a warm farewell. But I hope to drive him mad in between.
“There will be a lot of media attention. And it will be something special for the players to meet Klopp again. It will be very interesting, also on an emotional level.
“But I try not to think about it too much yet. I already said after we were paired with Liverpool that we will start thinking about it when the game is actually around the corner.”
The first leg takes place on April 7 at Dortmund’s Signal Iduna Park, with the return at Anfield on April 14.
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