This being Liverpool on the eve of a Champions League quarter-final, the talk was of bravery, history and of fans lining the streets to give Manchester City a traditionally ear-splitting welcome. There will be noise, there will be flares; Pep Guardiola looked slightly incredulous at it all.
He explained, patiently, that having been coach of Barcelona he wasn't exactly unused to a lively atmosphere. That Madrid and Seville had been known to make a racket, too. 'We accept this,' he said. 'At these places, they like to show how strong they are.' He clenched his upper torso, in the manner of a body-builder.