Liverpool coach Juergen Klopp has said he feels sympathy for Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola after UEFA imposed a penalty for depriving his club of European competitions of two seasons for alleged violations of the financial fair play rules.
With Citizens' hopes of retaining the Premier League almost ended, with Liverpool leading by 25 points after a 1-0 away victory over Norwich City on Saturday, Klopp said he was surprised by the punishment announced by UEFA against Man City last Friday.
"It was a shock, an incredible thing, the only thing I can talk about is football," Klopp told Sky Sports. "What this team did in football was exceptional, and the rest I don't know."
"I feel the feelings of Pep and the players, but that's how it goes. They can appeal, so we'll see what happens. This is really dangerous. But the football they gave was exceptional and will always be."
UEFA said it imposed sanctions on Citi for "serious breaches" of the rules of financial fair play by "inflating sponsorship profits in its accounts and data sent to the European Union between 2012 and 2016".
The "celestial team" denied any wrongdoing, and said it would appeal the decision to the Swiss-based sports arbitration court.