Liverpool and Manchester United will contest the headline act of this weekend’s Premier League action on Sunday afternoon.

Meeting for the 229th time, the bitter rivals are difficult to split in their most recent clashes.

The previous six editions of this fixture have them seen them claim one win apiece either side of four draws.

Jurgen Klopp and Jose Mourinho have been in charge of their respective clubs for the last four of those matches, meaning the latter has the upper hand, technically.

However, the current Premier League standings suggest otherwise for the time being.

As the season approaches halfway, Liverpool lead the competition by the slimmest of margins while United are 16 points adrift in sixth.

Klopp, though, cares little for the gap between the two clubs.

“I was never interested in the points of Manchester United, and I am not today," he said, per the Evening Standard.

"I don’t read too much of what you write, but of course I am aware of the criticism and stuff. But when we analyse them and switch off the sound, there is a lot of quality.

“There is speed, technique, physical strength, pretty much everything. They still have De Gea in goal, unbelievable. They have strikers they can switch between Rashford, Lukaku, Lingard, Martial, unbelievable quality.

“We don’t judge the points they have, we judge the quality they have, and we prepare for that.”

Klopp was less cooperative when asked how his men are preparing to deal with the Red Devils’ key threats - particularly Paul Pogba.

“I don’t know how much you ask Jose Mourinho about players from us? Does somebody ask him about Gini Wijnaldum? I think 100 per cent not!

“What can I say? Paul Pogba is a world-class player. That’s all I can say, and he’s a Man United player so I think we should prepare for him as well.”

In response to whether he would like the 25-year-old in his Liverpool team, the German said: “You know better than I, what happens if I give an answer to that question! So no answer!

“If you can make a story with that, that would be cool. ‘Klopp denies an answer!’”

LIVERPOOL FANS REACT

While his comments won’t form the basis of too many stories, they’ve certainly prompted discussion among Liverpool fans…

It’s clear some share Klopp’s view while others are having none of it.

Given the way Pogba has struggled to prove himself in a United shirt, it comes as something of a surprise to see certain members of the Anfield faithful still rate him quite so highly.

Do you believe Pogba deserves to be considered world-class despite the standard he’s set himself at Old Trafford? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment below.