Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp hailed Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola as "a really influential manager" but suggested his time in the Premier League will prove to be the sternest test of his coaching credentials.
Klopp and Guardiola played out a head-to-head record of four wins apiece while in charge of Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich and will clash on English soil for the first time when Liverpool host City at Anfield on Saturday.
City reeled off six straight victories at the start of the season but have struggled to replicate such domineering form since and Klopp views the peculiarities of the English game, along with the demands that Guardiola's playing style places on his squad, as combining to provide a taxing challenge for his rival.
"Guardiola has his clear philosophy. They were in a good way [at the start of the season], then something happened," the German told a pre-match news conference.
"They are successful, but this league is difficult, a lot of challenges every week.
"He's a really influential manager. He has a clear idea. He had a fantastic career until now; nice style at Barcelona, really good at Bayern. Now at City, he has to show how good he is.
"He's very influential, the Barcelona style is not possible for every club to play, it depends on the players you have. If a Sunday league team tries to play like Barcelona, it’s very difficult."
"He had three and a half weeks off, nice. He's back and a good striker," he said.
"I always thought he was a talented boy, but I never made a secret of it. Even without him, they're an outstanding team.
"It's only one thing, he can only score goals if we give him the ball. We need to be concentrated, that's the biggest challenge in this game.
"It's for both teams, hopefully, the same - they'll have the same problems with us."
"Both teams are good on counter attacks, both teams are good in possession, so we have to defend," he added.
"The details will make the difference. I’m not sure, it's nice to think about, try everything you can to win the game.
"What I like is that we beat them last year, unfortunately we lost the [League Cup] final.
"They have got better since last year, we are getting better. It will be interesting.
"They will not play like last year, it's really exciting. If I was not on the bench I would buy a ticket, 100 per cent, for this game."
