Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan says Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has had a huge impact on his career.
Gundogan and Klopp worked together at Borussia Dortmund and face each other in Wednesday's Champions League quarterfinal first leg at Anfield.
Liverpool are the only side to have beaten City in the Premier League this season, and Gundogan praised Klopp for creating a brilliant attacking trio of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane.
"Jurgen is a terrific coach and he's capable of motivating his team ahead of every game," he told City's official website.
"He doesn't mind if it's a friendly between amateur teams or a Champions League final, for example.
"He's a top guy who knows how to deal with his players, how to treat them and how to motivate them. And he's proving all that again with Liverpool -- their attack is incredibly strong.
"Liverpool are still the only team that's been capable of beating us in the Premier League. But we're aware why this happened, although we performed pretty well that day.
"Obviously, going back to Anfield for the first leg game is a great motivation for us. We'll try to play well and get a good result for the second leg.
"I think we're aware of our strengths and we know what we're capable of. We want to prove that in both games."
Gundogan reached the 2013 Champions League final with Dortmund under Klopp, scoring in their 2-1 defeat to Bundesliga rivals Bayern Munich at Wembley.
The Germany international said he had struggled when he first moved to BVB but credited Klopp with a crucial role in developing his career.
"I had four fantastic years with Jurgen. We won a lot of things together, we lived through many different experiences together -- we had our lows, too," he said.
"I came to Dortmund from a relatively small team [Nuremburg] and I struggled during my first six months to find my place there. I was a bit shy and, to be honest, I wasn't brave enough do certain things.
"But thanks to the help of my teammates, and with the help of Jurgen and his staff, I managed to improve.
"I was finally able to find my way and my place. It was hard, but I learned a lot and I tried to assimilate everything at that point.
"Jurgen played a very important role in all that and I'm very grateful to have played in that team at such a high level for so many years. I learned a lot and I managed to improve my game a lot, too.
"Those days left a mark on my career. Those were my first steps in European football, too, because it was an opportunity that I hadn't had before. So that's another thing I have to thank him for."