Jurgen Klopp believes Bayern Munich could be “more dangerous than before” against Liverpool due to their inconsistent form in 2018-19.
The Reds host Niko Kovac’s side on Tuesday in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.
Liverpool have been tipped by many as the favourites to progress to the quarter-finals, with Bayern’s dominance of German football appearing to be weakening during something of a transitional season.
They sit two points behind Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund, having played a game more, and twice fought back from a goal down to beat Augsburg 3-2 on Friday.
Klopp, though, thinks Bayern’s improved results since a run of no wins in four games in September shows they will be a real threat at Anfield.
“After six years as the dominator of the league, it was clear this would be a more difficult year,” he said. “They are two points behind Dortmund, they play Dortmund at home, they’re in the cup [DFB-Pokal], in the Champions League last 16… It’s a completely normal situation.
“With a huge quality team, you need to have the desire of a newcomer combined with the quality of a real contender. Maybe in the beginning of the season they didn’t have that but the situation from my point of view makes them even more dangerous than before.