Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has raised concerns over the Premier League's decision to make their clash against Swansea City at Liberty Stadium a rare early kick-off.
The Merseyside club travel to take on the Welsh side at noon on Sunday (local time) -- less than 72 hours after their Europa League first leg semi-final loss to Spanish side Villarreal.
"It's my first time [playing in the Premier League] at 12pm. It is really interesting to see who makes these decisions. But we can't change it obviously, so we have to play then," Klopp told reporters.
"We could have started at 2pm or 4pm. We have to travel to Cardiff and drive to Swansea. If somebody wants to make our way a little bit harder -- no problem, we are ready!" he said.
"If there is an opportunity for me to fight for something like this, then you can be sure I'll do it. But now it's too late. At [noon] I'm usually hungry. If my players are hungry tomorrow too then it's good for the game -- hungry for success."
The Premier League has not said why it scheduled the unusual kick-off for Liverpool and Swansea, currently in seventh and 15th place respectively.
But it is possible the league wanted no game to compete with Leicester City's bid for their first ever title when they face Manchester United starting at 2pm on Sunday.
Liverpool have been told by a tribunal to pay second tier leaders Burnley up to £8 million ($16.7 million) for injured striker Danny Ings.
Klopp, however, refused to comment on the decision and hinted there was a chance that Ings, who was expected to miss the season with a cruciate ligament injury, could be involved in their final four league games.
Reuters
