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FA Cup: Jurgen Klopp surprised Kovacic started against Liverpool


 Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has said he was ‘surprised ’ to see Chelsea midfielder, Mateo Kovacic in the starting XI for Saturday’s FA Cup final.

Kovacic suffered a light injury midweek after a reckless tackle from Daniel James in the Blues’ 3-0 win over Leeds United in midweek.

James was shown a red card for the challenge, while Kovacic was forced off injured, making the 28-year-old a doubt for the Wembley showpiece.

Chelsea boss, Thomas Tuchel was more positive about the Croatian’s fitness in his pre-match press conference on Friday.

“It’s a bit of a surprise [Kovacic starting],” Klopp told ITV before kick-off.

“I heard in the press conference there might be a chance. I saw that tackle and the red card for Leeds and didn’t think he could make it.

“That was a surprise.”

Liverpool went ahead to defeat the Blues again on penalty shootouts being a repeat of the Carabao Cup final in February. The victory means that the Reds have now won two domestic trophies – the Carabao Cup and FA Cup – beating Chelsea in a penalty shootout.

Chelsea captain, Cesar Azpilicueta and Mason Mount missed from the spot to give Jurgen Klopp’s side their second trophy of the season.

The Reds are still in the race to win the Premier League title but have to pray for any slip up from Manchester City while they also have a date with Real Madrid for the final of the season’s Champions League.

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