Carlo Ancelotti hilariously admitted that he told Jurgen Klopp that Liverpool would still win the Champions League even if they lost to Napoli.
The Reds lost their opening Group E clash 2-0 at the San Paolo on Tuesday evening and dealt an early blow to their Champions League title defence.
But Napoli boss Ancelotti was spotted smiling at the Liverpool head coach after the match.
When reporters asked the 60-year-old Italian why he was smiling at Klopp, Ancelotti revealed: "Because I told him: 'Don't you worry, if you lose in Naples, then you end up winning the Champions League.'"
Napoli and Liverpool met in this stage of the competition last season and the Italian club defeated the Reds 1-0 at the San Paolo.
But Klopp's men exacted retribution in the return leg as Mohamed Salah scored in the 1-0 victory at Anfield to fire Liverpool to the knockout stages and dump Napoli out of the competition.
And Liverpool fans agree with Ancelotti as they are ready for history to repeat itself and retain the Champions League crown this season.
Dries Mertens fired Napoli into the lead late into the second half after Andy Robertson fouled Jose Callejon and Ancelotti's men were awarded a controversial penalty.
Napoli would double their advantage after ex-Tottenham Hotspur forward Fernando Llorente pounced on a Virgil van Dijk error in stoppage time and slotted the ball past Adrian.
The Liverpool shot-stopper also received praise early in the second half when he pulled off a superb one-handed save to deny Mertens.
Klopp admitted that the defeat "hurt" due to the "opportunities" that Liverpool didn't take full advantage of in the match.
The German head coach told BT Sport: "It was an open game with a lot of counter-attacks, but we didn't finish them off and that is a problem.
"In the second half, it was a wild game; they were running and we were running.
"I don't think it's a penalty. What can I say? For me, it is clear and obvious no penalty.
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"He jumps before any contact -- we can't change that.
"We played a lot of good football, but didn't finish it off. We controlled moments but had not enough chances in the end.
"We made decisions that were not right and have to accept the result. It was very often the final ball that was not right."
Liverpool will resume their Premier League campaign on Sunday when they travel to Chelsea.
Will Liverpool retain the Champions League title this season?
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Featured Image Credit: PATopics: Liverpool, Football News, Football, Carlo Ancelotti, REds, UEFA, Jurgen Klopp, Napoli, Champions League
