Liverpool and Manchester City, Jürgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola – one of the greatest competitive rivalries in footballing history. Whilst there have obviously been rivalries contested over a longer period, there are few that can match these sparring matches for quality. The 2018/19 Premier League season showed just fierce the competition is. However competitive the onfield action is, things are friendly off the pitch. Ederson has discussed how he hangs out with Liverpool players on his days off.
The Man City keeper, Brazil’s number two (behind Alisson), has been in the Premier League since 2017. The champions bought the shot stopper from Benfica for £35m. His talent is impossible to deny.
RTE have reported comments Ederson has made about hanging out with Liverpool players in his spare time. The keeper said:
“I have a good relationship, not only with Alisson (Becker) but also with (Roberto) Firmino and Fabinho. When we have a day off in the same day, we sometimes gather, we have a barbecue. It’s difficult with our routine and the amount of games to have the same day off, but we have done it a few times before. Our rivalry is only on the pitch.”
What RTK has to say
It’s the season of goodwill, you won’t find us complaining that rival footballers should hate each other’s guts. Keeping morale high is key to winning a title, having close friends is key to keeping morale high.
It is also important to consider that these footballers grew up in a country immeasurably different to the North West of England. By getting together regularly they can fight homesickness.
Liverpool and Manchester City are two of the best footballing sides we have ever seen in this country. It is good to hear that they respect each other rather than letting on field emotions sour their enjoyment of the game.
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