Jurgen Klopp excited by Liverpool's Champions League clash with 'European royalty' Inter

Jurgen Klopp savoured the return of “European royalty football” as he urged Liverpool to get the result against Inter Milan in Italy to ensure they don’t have to rely on the Anfield factor to book their place in the Champions League quarter-finals.

The Serie A champions host the 2020 Premier League winners on Wednesday with Liverpool bidding to reach a third Champions League final in five seasons. It is a fixture with a controversial past, with Inter beating Liverpool in the 1965 European Cup semi-final in a tie when the referee was subsequently accused of taking bribes.

But Klopp believes the past should not be a burden, explaining: “I think you have to use history but not suffer from it. Two big clubs, two incredibly successful clubs, but that is what the Champions League should be. We just know we face an incredible strong team and that is difficult enough.

"We don’t have to put history on top of that. Us against Inter is massive: proper European royalty football. Inter is a top-class team: top-class players, top-class manager. You cannot see it in the table but they are probably the best team in Italy again this year. It is one of these games, if I wasn’t going to be there, I would watch it, definitely.”

Liverpool have already won at San Siro this season, beating AC Milan 2-1 with a weakened team in December as they got a perfect group-stage record for the first time.

“It was incredible but it doesn’t help us now,” said Klopp. “In the years we went to the final we had pretty average group-stage results, we came through pretty much on one wheel, but it didn’t hold us back from trying to play a proper knockout stage.”

The away goals rule has been scrapped and while Klopp is unsure how much of a difference it will make