Bayern Munich's Mats Hummels compares Jupp Heynckes and Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp
Bayern Munich and Germany defender Mats Hummels has reflected on life under current boss Jupp Heynckes and compared him with his former coach Jürgen Klopp, now manager at Liverpool.
Hummels and Klopp won back-to-back Bundesliga titles in 2011 and 2012, adding the DFB Cup to what became a domestic double in the latter season.
Klopp is now enjoying success on Merseyside, although that comes as no surprise to Hummels, who admitted the Bundesliga leaders were glad to avoid the Reds in the draw for the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League.
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"I know how strong Klopp’s teams are," said Hummels, who played in the 2013 Champions League final that Dortmund lost to Bayern, to England's Daily Mail. "I know how good his teams are when they get to this level.
"His teams always perform at the highest when they face the best teams. That's for certain. I don't think there was a team remaining who wanted to face Liverpool. They work so hard, they play so intense and aggressively with the quality of players they have — especially up front."
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With the Bundesliga title as good as wrapped up, hitting that peak in the business end of the season in terms of the cup competitions is the aim for Hummels, who is keen to be on the winning team in Kiev this May: "[I want] the biggest trophy in club football. It's the hardest competition there is. We want to win it."
Bayern will look to take a step closer to that objective when they travel to Sevilla this Tuesday for the first leg of their quarter-final clash, with the return leg at the Allianz Arena a week later. Liverpool face Manchester City in the last eight before, who knows, Klopp and Heynckes could be in opposite dugouts in the semi-final, or perhaps even in Kiev.
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