Jurgen Klopp's record in the Europa League

Liverpool kick off their Europa League campaign with a trip to Austria this Thursday.

The meeting with LASK at the Raiffeisen Arena will be the first time Liverpool have ever faced the team from Linz, while it also marks the Reds first match in Europe outside of the Champions League since 2016.

As a club Liverpool have one of the better records in the Europa League (or UEFA Cup as it was called pre-2009). The Reds have won the competition three times (1973, 1976, 2001) and have won an impressive 66 of their 124 ties in Europe's second-tier competition to date.

Jurgen Klopp suggested he would be taking it seriously too, promising to field 'a top team' on Thursdays as well as Sundays, as the pre-tournament favourites set their sights on a May trip across the Irish Sea to Dublin where the final will be held.

READ MORE: LASK vs Liverpool – Match Preview

While only Sevilla have lifted the vase-shaped trophy more times than Liverpool in the competition's history, what of Klopp's own record?

Jurgen Klopp's record in the Europa League

The sample size for Klopp in the Europa League is pretty small, as it's a tournament he's largely avoided in his team as a coach.

Overall, the German has managed just 23 matches in the Europa League/UEFA Cup proper (not including qualification rounds) – less than a quarter of his Champions League total of 101.

Of those 23, 13 came with Liverpool back in the 2015/16 season, when they reached the final during Klopp's maiden campaign at Anfield, with the rest shared between Dortmund (eight) and Mainz (two).

Perhaps surprisingly, Klopp has only won eight times in the competition (six of those with Liverpool), drawing nine and losing six, giving him a win percentage of 34.7. That figure feels especially low when compared to the 56-year-old's overall Liverpool win rate of 60%.

Has Jurgen Klopp won the Europa League?

Klopp has never won the Europa League.

While his Dortmund and Mainz's side made swift exits at the group stages and first rounds, he did make it to the final with Liverpool in 2016.

Taking over after the sacking of Brendan Rodgers in autumn of 2015, Klopp steered the Reds out of their Europa League group and through a dramatic knockout campaign.

Liverpool saw off Augsburg, Manchester United, Dortmund and Villarreal on the way to final in Basle, but fell short against Sevilla – losing 3-1 despite Daniel Sturridge's opener.

READ MORE: Where are they now? Liverpool's last Europa League starting XI

That match on 18 May 2016 marks the last time either Klopp or Liverpool featured in the Europa League, with the Reds ever-present in the Champions League in the seasons up until 2023/24.

Having won that trophy already, however, Klopp now has a chance to add a new title to his collection next year.

What has Jurgen Klopp said about the Europa League?

Speaking to TNT Sports, Klopp has revealed he 'would love' to make another final, but stopped short of setting a public target for his team.

"We never had like public targets, we never needed that to go as far as we can," he said, via Liverpoolfc.com.

"First and foremost, I think we all have to make sure that everybody, for the team I'm responsible, [but] that we all respect the competition in the right manner [and] that we respect the opponents [in] the right manner.

"Wherever we will go that will be a massive game for the teams. Everybody [who] comes to Anfield, it will be a massive game for them. It's also in the Champions League the same.

"But it will be here as well, and we have to be 100 per cent ready for that. That's the most important stuff. And what do you say? Don't praise the day before the night? So why should we talk about anything before we even play the first game?

"We want to go as far as somehow possible. I would love to go to the final, obviously, but I have no clue if you can reach that because there will be a lot of fantastic football teams in between us and that target. So we have to make sure we perform."