Jurgen Klopp is keen to play down the significance of his return to Borussia Dortmund for Thursday's Europa League quarterfinal, but admitted: "It's better to be here than North Korea."
The Liverpool manager, who left the Bundesliga club after a successful eight-year spell last July, has been the subject of intense scrutiny since the draw was made.
Speaking at a packed prematch news conference inside Signal Iduna Park, he emphasised that the focus should be purely on his team's challenge against the tournament favourites rather than a hero's reception.
"I expect absolutely nothing," he said. "I'm a little disappointed we have to speak about this. I said goodbye nine month ago, I've come back and during the game everything is absolutely normal.
"During the game nobody has to think about how I feel when they score a goal or something. That's the sport. We love it because since the beginning of our lives we've always played against our best friends and wanted to beat them.
"I don't think about my situation for one second. I prepare my team and that's why I am here. I had a wonderful time here and it's better to be here than, I don't know, North Korea or somewhere."
Klopp, who arrived at the stadium half an hour before speaking to the media in order that he could catch up in private with old friends, also said his in-depth knowledge of the Dortmund squad -- almost all of whom worked under him -- will have no major bearing on tomorrow's outcome.
"That's not really a crucial factor," Klopp said. "My players do not expect me to give them a detailed breakdown on every single Dortmund player -- whether they turn to the left or right or through the middle. We see that they play attractive football, but we haven't travelled here without hope of getting a result.
"It will be up to both sides to build the play and develop a good rhythm. Dortmund have a cool way of playing, courageous going forward and aggressive, but we're well prepared and I want to see how we perform."
Roberto Firmino, who had been considered a doubt, trained on Wednesday night and Liverpool are almost at full strength for the tie.
Dortmund will only miss the injured defender Nevan Subotic, but Klopp says they may have the advantage of extra freshness after rotating some positions in their 3-2 win over Werder Bremen on Saturday.
"Nobody in my squad really rested at the weekend," Klopp said. "They had to play [against Tottenham] and we have to play on Sunday against Stoke. But it's all about the moment -- we need to use the moment tomorrow night, and there will be a few of them.
"If there is one little advantage for us it's that [the recent success of] Borussia Dortmund started a few years ago by beating the favourites.
"A lot of things can happen. We have to really do our best, play top, top level football and only then do we have a chance. But if we are as good as we can be, then it's a tight match."
Asked whether his side should be tipped to win the tournament if they overcome the Bundesliga's second-placed side, Klopp said there would be other factors to consider.
"If we win against the strongest team in the competition then maybe we become something like favourites, but it depends on the other teams. I don't think in these categories.
"We've had a lot of good moments in our season, but didn't get all the benefit, especially in the league table," Klopp added. "If we have a good moment tomorrow then it's a challenge for both teams."