Clubs Who Mock Anfield’s ‘Overrated’ Atmosphere Always End Up Regretting It

If you're playing a European away game at Anfield, it's probably not the best idea to mock the atmosphere at the ground as it tends to come back to bite you.

Going into a Champions League group stage clash, Napoli's Dries Mertens told of how he didn't get caught up in the hype of the famous Liverpool 'This is Anfield' sign when he came across it.

Having previously turned out in a Europa League game away at Liverpool for Utrecht, he said he wasn't impressed after hearing a lot about it.

"My strongest memory is that they have a sign saying 'This is Anfield' and everyone was talking about it, so I was thinking it's very big, you know," Mertens told The Times in an interview.

"I came through the tunnel and I asked, 'Where is the thing?' and they said you missed it and I hadn't noticed it.

"So, in the second half, I'm looking at this small thing and asking, 'Is this so special?'"

Mertens, however, ended up rueing his words after Napoli lost 1-0 and fell into the Europa League for the second consecutive year.

He joins the likes of Thomas Tuchel, Julian Nagelsmann, Massimo Carrera and Kevin De Bruyne in playing down the atmosphere Liverpool fans create but then ending up losing.

It's set to be another big European night at Anfield tonight as they host Benfica in the Champions League quarter final second leg.

The Reds beat the Lisbon outfit 3-1 in the first leg at Estadio da Luz and will take on Unai Emery's Villarreal in the semi-final should they get through tonight with no difficulty.