LONDON: Rarely has one man been the focus of such attention in the Europa League.

But Juergen Klopp’s return to Borussia Dortmund as Liverpool manager for Thursday’s first leg of the quarter-final was always going to be an emotional affair with such a strong bond between him and his former club after seven largely successful years.

Klopp oversaw steady progression after taking over Dortmund in 2008 and led the young side to back-to-back Bundesliga titles by 2012, when the club claimed its first double by humbling Bayern Munich in the German Cup final.

A Champions League final appearance in 2013 was as good as it got after that.

The end, when it came in 2015, was mourned by Dortmund fans who remembered only the good times, as well as Klopp’s infectious good humour and enthusiasm.

“Danke Kloppo” (Thank you Kloppo) was trending on Twitter at the time.

Klopp is already extremely popular among Liverpool fans and players for much the same reasons, with his passion for the game and his new club clear to all from his behaviour on the touchline and in news conferences.

Klopp quickly put his stamp on Liverpool through the team’s high-energy approach and fierce pressing game.

Results have generally been inconsistent but are starting to improve, like they did at Dortmund, and Anfield has become something of a fortress.

Fans appear happy to give him time to build his own team.

It’s widely felt that Liverpool will be a force under Klopp, especially once he gets his own players in, and that the pair are a perfect fit — just like it was at Dortmund.

Of course Liverpool’s trip to Germany isn’t just about Klopp — even if German broadcaster Sport1 was reportedly planning a “Kloppo Cam” focused only on the Liverpool manager for the duration of the game.

And Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson has called on his team-mates to ignore the hype surrounding their manager.

“It might be different for the boss going back to his old club but for us as players we need to go there, concentrate on the game and what we need to do and just focus on the job in hand,” Henderson told British media.

“It’s a very big game against a very good team. It will be tough. They have some top players but with the players we’ve got, I believe we can go there and get a good result.”

Unlike Liverpool, whose Champions League hopes rest solely on Europa League glory, Dortmund sealed their return to Europe’s premier club competition next season with Saturday’s 3-2 victory over Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga.

But the Europa League represents arguably a better chance of silverware than the Bundesliga, where Dortmund trail Bayern by five points.

Dortmund also have a German Cup semi-final match to come against Hertha Berlin, but progression in Europe is a priority.

Elsewhere, holders Sevilla continue their quest for a fifth title in the past decade as they head to Athletic Bilbao for the first leg of their all-Spanish tie.

Sevilla striker Fernando Llorente spent nine years in Athletic’s first team and the Spain international admitted it would be a night of mixed emotions at San Mames.

“It was a surprise having to face the club where I started playing but it will be nice. It will be strange as well, though, because I spent 17 wonderful years of my life in Bilbao,” Llorente told UEFA.com.

“Sevilla have a real desire to win this competition. It would be unique and quite incredible, because I don’t think any team have done it three years in a row.”

Villarreal tightened their grip on fourth place in La Liga over the weekend and welcome Sparta Prague, conquerors of Lazio in the previous round, to Spain for the first leg.

Meanwhile, Braga will look to shake off last Friday’s 5-1 thrashing at Benfica as the 2011 finalists host Ukrainian outfit Shakhtar Donetsk, the 2009 champions, in Portugal.

Published in Dawn, April 7th, 2016