JURGEN KLOPP has lowered expectations of a fierce Merseyside derby - because he's been pleasantly surprised by how friendly Everton fans are!
THEY'RE NICE: Jurgen Klopp has hailed Everton fans
Klopp is preparing for his first clash against Liverpool's local rivals tomorrow night.
The former Borussia Dortmund boss is no stranger to the importance of beating your neighbours thanks to his frequent clashes with Schalke in the Ruhr derby.
And, incredibly, he thinks that rivalry is spicier than the Merseyside one.
"Since I've been here I get the feeling that the rivalry was more aggressive between Dortmund and Schalke," Klopp told the Liverpool Echo.
"For example, you wouldn't work for Dortmund if you were a Schalke fan. No chance.
"If you say, 'Okay, I'm good at this and this, can I work here?' They'd say: 'What club?' You say Schalke they say: 'Thank-you, now go'.
"Dortmund to Schalke is 25km. In Dortmund itself, there aren't many Schalke fans but if you go 10km out there are a lot. As Dortmund manager, I lived in a street and my two neighbours were Schalke fans. They showed it every day, flying flags!
"If we lost to them the next day I'd see them and they'd be shouting: 'Morning!' When we won, they didn't say hello.
"Here I feel it's a little bit different. All the Evertonians I've met until now have been pretty friendly."
He added: "I've met some Evertonians in the street and they've been friendly.
"I've had taxi drivers who have been Everton fans.
"They've been really nice."
However, Klopp did wonder whether the Everton fans he was meeting had ulterior motives.
He joked: "At the beginning I thought, 'Okay, maybe they're happy I'm here because they think that means Liverpool won't have any success for the next 20 years!"
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