Pep Guardiola has said he believes Jurgen Klopp will “come back” despite his decision to step down as Liverpool manager at the end of the season.
Klopp is calling for an end to his nine-year spell at Anfield, citing exhaustion as the reason behind his decision, and has suggested he may never return to management.
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However, Guardiola believes his long-time rival, who he will face when Manchester City take on Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday, will eventually return to training.
“I completely respect his decision,” Guardiola said at a news conference on Friday.
“I spoke to him and I had the feeling that he would come back later. He loves football. His passion is still there. He explained perfectly why. So in the Premier League it is the last time [we meet], but maybe in the FA Cup we can find another one. We will see.”
Guardiola and Klopp have shared the last six Premier League titles (City won five and Liverpool the other) and are once again involved in the battle for top spot alongside Mikel Arteta's Arsenal.
Despite City winning more titles during Klopp's time at Anfield, defender Trent Alexander-Arnold has said Liverpool's successes “mean more because of the financial situation of both clubs”.
Both Erling Haaland and Rúben Dias have since responded to Alexander-Arnold, who is injured and will miss Sunday's game, but when the question was posed to Guardiola, the City boss refused to get involved.
“I wish him a speedy recovery and I hope he returns to the playing fields as soon as possible,” he said.
Guardiola also said his players did not need Alexander-Arnold's comments to get them excited about what is billed as an early title decision.
“Do you think they want to fight because Erling [Haaland] and Ruben [Dias] “Talk?” he said.
“Without these conversations we won't be able to fight? We are there and after what happened in recent years we are going to try to play a good game.”
