Jurgen Klopp pleads with Liverpool fans to 'listen to the experts' and get Covid vaccine

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has urged supporters to "listen to those who know" when it comes to the Covid vaccines.

As he asked fans to get the vaccine, he warned them to "ignore lies and misinformation", which in turn he said, would leave them "wanting the vaccine and the booster".

Klopp's comments come as a record-breaking 88,376 new coronavirus cases were recorded in the UK - up 10,000 on the previous day.

Hundreds of thousands living in the North West have booked their Covid booster vaccination as people try to protect themselves before Christmas.

Figures show around 228,000 appointments have been made on the NHS National Booking Service in the region in just a week.

Writing in the Liverpool match-day programme ahead of the game against Newcastle United, Klopp said he would not apologise for his views on the vaccination, "no matter how unpopular it might make me".

The Reds boss said: "I won’t apologise for the view I hold on the vaccination, no matter how unpopular it might make me in certain sections of society. I’m the same privately as I am publicly on this.

"If I come across friends or people I care about in my life away from football and they tell me they haven’t had a jab yet, I do my best to encourage them to listen to experts. It’s never a case of ‘listen to me’ – it’s always ‘listen to those who know’.

"Ignore those who pretend to know. Ignore lies and misinformation. Listen to people who know best. If you do that, you end up wanting the vaccine and the booster."

How is Covid affecting the Premier League?

A number of Premier League fixtures have been postponed due to Covid outbreaks within clubs.

Manchester United saw their match on Tuesday postponed due to issues, while its game against Brighton on Saturday at Old Trafford has also been cancelled as the hosts only have seven players available.

Watford's trip to Burnley on Wednesday was also called off hours before kick-off.

But, despite the postponements, the Premier League has confirmed matches will go ahead as planned where possible.

Klopp revealed he has already received his booster, with uptake at the club "very high".

He recently used a press conference to call for more honesty from Premier League clubs about how many of their players and staff have Covid before asking for matches to be postponed.

In the match-day programme he wrote: “At the time of writing this column I have no idea what impact the previous game against Aston Villa will have had on team selection. There is of course a wider national conversation on the increasing spread of Covid, both in the country but at football clubs also.

“My message around this has always been simple and clear, I hope: I trust experts. I follow the advice of smart, educated people who know their field because they’ve dedicated their lives to it and have studied it.

“We are clearly moving back to stricter measures around the team environment and at LFC we are absolutely OK with that.

"As I have spoken about before, we have a very high take-up of the vaccine at our club and have done for a long time.

"It might be 100 per cent now or as close as is possible, so that’s important.

“I have no issue telling you I received my booster jab as soon as I was eligible and again that will be the case for many if not nearly all within our ranks in the coming days and weeks."

Addressing his critics, he continued: “The ‘stick to football’ abuse so misses the point. Yes, I know about football having spent my entire life in the game.

"And my view on the vaccination isn’t from my own imagination.

“We are very blessed in this country and throughout Europe to have such incredible access to it. I see that as a privilege and one I will always be grateful for.

“We don’t know what impact the new variant will have on football in the short or medium term.

"It will certainly impact player availability as positive cases arise and might result in fixtures being postponed sporadically, but that is for the governing bodies to manage.

“Clearly we hope disruption is minimal, but that’s not in our hands and nor should it be. Again, we must trust those who know best, those with the knowledge.

"We just want as many people as possible to be safe. Health has to be the priority always. Health of participants, staff and supporters.”