Jurgen Klopp admits he was surprised by Cristiano Ronaldo's sudden return to Manchester United, and says he had no idea that he was considering leaving Juventus.
The 36-year-old completed a stunning move to Old Trafford just before the transfer window closed, rejoining the club he left in 2009 to move to Real Madrid for a then world record £80m fee.
Ronaldo marked his return to English football with a brace in the 4-1 win over Newcastle on Saturday, leading the line as United's sole striker in a game that also saw Bruno Fernandes and Jesse Lingard get on the scoresheet.
As for Liverpool, they were relatively inactive in the transfer window, only bringing in central defender Ibrahima Konate from RB Leipzig in a deal worth £36m. But that hasn't stopped the Reds from making a strong start to the Premier League season, with victories over Norwich and Burnley followed up with an entertaining 1-1 draw with title rivals Chelsea at Anfield.
Inevitably, though, managers up and down the country have been questioned about Ronaldo's return to Manchester, and Klopp - speaking before the clash with Leeds United at Elland Road - was no different.
The German was asked by Sky Sports whether or not he was surprised by the Portuguese's return, to which he replied: "Yes, I was surprised - not about United in the end but whenever the first rumours [came out] that he wanted to leave Juventus. I had no idea about them.
"I was surprised about that and then City, I thought this will be good fun for United and then they [United] obviously stepped in. It's all fine, free world and they can obviously do what they want."
Klopp added while laughing, "Am I happy he's at United? No, I can't say that, it's not true,"
Liverpool's first opportunity to go head-to-head with Ronaldo comes on 24 October when Klopp takes his side to Old Trafford. To date, the Portuguese has only scored three goals in 12 appearances against the Reds, although United have won eight of those encounters.
Source : 90min