Manuel Pellegrini takes a swipe at Jurgen Klopp

Picking up a 1-1 draw against Liverpool on Monday night, Manuel Pellegrini’s West Ham side have really added fuel to the title race.

While the Hammers will still be rueing a string of missed opportunities, it was James Milner’s involvement in the Reds’ opener that has most people talking.

Standing in a clear offside position, Milner was able to cut the ball back to Sadio Mane who gave the visitors a 1-0 lead in the 22nd minute.

Despite the Hammers battling back to take a point thanks to Michail Antonio’s equaliser, the former Manchester City boss made it clear he was still unimpressed.

With the managerial duo appearing to share a heated exchange at the full-time whistle, Pellegrini wasn’t done there.

Reigniting a long-held grudge, the Chillien boss said Klopp “is used to winning with offside goals” during the post-match press conference.

"Klopp is used to winning with goals that are offside!" 😳😅

Manuel Pellegrini aims dig at the @LFC boss and insists the German 'cannot complain about nothing' after the 1-1 draw with @WestHamUtd 🛠

Full press conference 👉 https://t.co/ZyHqG1Img8 pic.twitter.com/o9lOlEOJ2U

— Hayters TV (@HaytersTV) February 4, 2019

 

Pellegrini vs Klopp – Round 2

For those footballing historians out there, you may remember that this is not the first time Klopp and Pellegrini have crossed paths.

The match that the 65-year-old is referring to was when Pellegrini’s Malaga side faced off against Klopp’s Borussia Dortmund in a Champions League tie back in April 2013.

Malaga were 2-1 up heading into injury time when Dortmund scored twice in two minutes to go through to the semi-finals.

Clearly still upset by his controversial loss at the La Rosaleda Stadium six years ago, Pellegrini was also incredibly open about wanting to give his former side a helping hand on Monday.

“I said in the week that we need to win this game for our fans and if we are going to give a hand to Manchester City, well, they are my club also.

“Maybe that was the reason the manager of Liverpool didn’t like it.”

Pellegrini spent three years at the Etihad and helped the Sky Blues pick up two League Cups and the Premier League title back in 2014.

 

Advantage Manchester City?

With the title race almost too close to call, the advantage has once again been handed back to Pep Guardiola.

Despite chasing down a five-point buffer at some points of the season, Manchester City once again have the chance to steal pole position.

Putting three past Arsenal over the weekend, the defending champions will head to Goodison Park on Wednesday night.

With Liverpool now coming off the back of a pair of 1-1 draws against the Hammers and Leicester, some have begun to question whether nervous are starting to appear in Klopp’s dressing room.

Speaking on Monday Night Football, West Ham skipper Mark Noble confessed that he could sense the nervousness in the Liverpool squad.

“I watched the game at Anfield on TV and you could tell that with the history Liverpool have got, the anxiety around the stadium, it does feed into the players, I could even feel it sitting at home on my sofa.”

Ahead of what is becoming an increasingly important clash against Bournemouth on Saturday, do you think Liverpool have the steel to hold their nerve in the title race?

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