Watch Jurgen Klopp preview Liverpool’s Premier League opener vs. Watford

Jurgen Klopp held his first press conference of the 2017/18 campaign on Friday morning, discussing Liverpool Premier League opener at Watford.

The Reds take to Vicarage Road on Saturday afternoon looking to get the season off to a strong start, facing off against Marco Silva’s Hornets.

After a productive season, Klopp’s side will be confident heading to Hertfordshire, and the German was in positive spirits at Melwood ahead of the trip.

“We saw a few games in pre-season, we should be prepared as well as possible,” he said of Liverpool’s opponents.

“[Silva]’s a very dominant coach, we saw a lot of what he brought in at Hull. You can see a lot of his philosophy [at Watford].

“Maybe it’s easier with the crowd at your back [at home], bringing this 20 or 30 percent.

“The style of play is clear, it’s a football-playing side. We know where we have to defend and where we have to use the space.”

Klopp also discussed Philippe Coutinho‘s future, with club owners Fenway Sports Group issuing a hands-off warning to Barcelona earlier on Friday.

And while the 50-year-old was emphatic in his stance over the Brazilian, he moved to rule him out of Saturday’s clash due to a back injury, along with four others.

Nathaniel Clyne, Adam Lallana and Daniel Sturridge are all sidelined, while Danny Ings will line up for the Liverpool U23s on Friday night against Swansea City.

HONG KONG, CHINA - Wednesday, July 19, 2017: Liverpool's Mohamed Salah during the Premier League Asia Trophy match between Liverpool and Crystal Palace at the Hong Kong International Stadium. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

Klopp will be able to call upon new signing Mohamed Salah, however, and he is clearly relishing the prospect of fielding the Egyptian.

“Offensively, he’s natural, and that’s really cool. We want to keep that, that’s how it is,” he said.

“It makes us more difficult to defend, because speed is the most difficult thing to defend in football.”

The 25-year-old is likely to be the only debutant in Klopp’s starting lineup on Saturday, but he could also call upon left-back Andrew Robertson and young striker Dominic Solanke.

The Premier League kicks off at the Emirates Stadium on Friday night, as Leicester City take on Liverpool’s title rivals, Arsenal.

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