Jurgen Klopp takes thinly-veiled dig at Premier League rivals as he insists 'only Liverpool care about League Cup'

'Nobody cares about this competition… but we do,' the Reds boss said

Klopp has said his side will give their all against Southampton (Getty)

In a thinly-veiled dig at his Premier League rivals, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has insisted his side are the only team in England’s top division to care about the League Cup.

Klopp’s men welcome Southampton to Anfield on Tuesday night in the second leg of their semi-final clash with the south-coast side. Having succumbed to a disappointing defeat at St Mary’s two weeks ago, the Reds will be looking to overturn a one-goal deficit as they seek to reach their second League Cup final under the German.

And despite the demands of Premier League football, Klopp has insisted his side are as focused as ever on the competition and remain the only club genuinely interested in lifting the cup.

Speaking to the assembled press on Monday afternoon, Klopp said: “I expect 100 percent from us. I expect 100 percent from the crowd.

“Southampton is in a good run at this moment. Good results. But we want to go to the final too.

“I like this competition because we are the only team who, since I came in, have played every Capital One Cup game.

“From outside viewing, it looks like they press the Cup in between the season. It looks like no-one cares about it.

“Nobody cares about this competition… but we do.”

But the German hastened to add that his side have no intention in prioritising their fixtures and continue to take each game one step at a time.

“I never thought about priorities because we always think about the next game,” he added.

“It’s now Capital One Cup, then FA Cup, then Premier League [because that’s the order].”

Nathan Redmond’s strike for Southampton 12 days ago is the only goal that currently separates the two teams.

Liverpool underwhelmed against Claude Puel's men in the first leg of this semi-final clash and were it not for Redmond's profligacy in front goal, the deficit would have been significantly greater.

As a result, Klopp believes that everything remains possible for his team.

“I think I have played more against Southampton than any other team,” he remarked.

“They are a football playing side, against us they always defended pretty deep. I think that’s a sign of respect.

“In Southampton we knew it was not a good game for us. Probably both managers were frustrated. They had chances. It was only a 1-0 - that is no different for us. Still everything is possible for us.”