KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON WINNING
| Published date | 07 April 2024 |
| Publication title | Daily Star (England) |
Liverpool face old foes Manchester United this aftenoon.
His first appearance at Old Trafford saw him concede four times as United knocked their biggest rivals out of the FA Cup last month.
But the Irishman's unflustered temperament was a big factor in why Klopp refused to consider letting him go last summer to secure more game time. And Kelleher said: "It was a good lesson. It was my first time playing at Old Trafford and you could feel the crowd.
"It's similar to Anfield in that respect but we have to manage that better. We will go there and try to control the crowd as much as we can.
"I don't get overly nervous for games. That's just my personality. I've always been quite calm - and it's worked out well so far.
"I am quite relaxed on and offthe pitch. On it, I trust in my ability - and I've always believed in the ability I have. I suppose I take that belief with me and try to show my personality out there.
"It's important that you have the ability to stay level-headed as a goalkeeper because you need to make good decisions in a split-second.
"You need to be able to stay calm if you are to make the right decisions."
When Kelleher spoke to his manager about leaving Liverpool before the start of the season, Klopp told him he could not allow him to depart.
The Liverpool boss assured the Cork-born Republic of Ireland international that he would get minutes on the pitch - and both Kelleher and Alisson have played 24 games this season as the Reds continue to challenge for the Premier League and Europa League.
He was also in the team when the Merseysiders beat Chelsea to lift the Carabao Cup in February.
Kelleher accepts that he might have to weigh up his future again when Klopp departs in the summer. He said: "There were obviously discussions because I wanted to play as much as I can. It was clear that because of the circumstances, that I had to stay.
"It was very unfortunate that Ali picked up an injury but on the other side it's been an opportunity for me to get more games.
"The manager did say that anything can happen like that.
"It couldn't have worked out much better, to be fair.
"I've obviously had a lot of games this season, so the decision to stay was probably the right one. It's been really good for me to get this run of games. It's what I have been working...
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