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Jürgen Klopp: “There are so many moments in this job when you ask yourself: again?”
Photo: Carl Markham / dpa
On Friday morning, Liverpool FC released a video in which coach Jürgen Klopp surprisingly announced that he would be leaving the English football club in the summer. A few hours and a training session later, Klopp answered questions from journalists.
A little reluctantly, he admitted. “I felt like I had six press conferences a week for the last nine years,” said the 56-year-old to the media representatives present. »I really don't have a problem with you, but I can't wait until I don't have to do this anymore. There are so many moments in this job where you ask yourself: again?”
When he signed a new contract until 2026, he was “100 percent convinced” that he would fulfill it, emphasized Klopp. But he misjudged his energy level and realized that his resources were not infinite. "There are so many things in this job where you have to do your best," he said. »And especially at a club like Liverpool, because it means so much and is so important to so many people. I can't ride on three wheels. That is not allowed. And I never wanted to just be the passenger.”
After coaching positions in the Bundesliga at Mainz 05 and Borussia Dortmund, Klopp joined the traditional English club in October 2015. He won the Champions League with the Reds in 2019 and won Liverpool's first championship in 30 years the following year. "When Jürgen started with us in 2015, he said he wanted to leave the club in a better condition than he found it," said Liverpool managing director Billy Hogan at the press conference. There is no doubt that Klopp has achieved this goal.
»Everything is going in the right direction. That's one of the reasons why I can go," said Klopp, who seemed very composed and didn't want to reminisce yet. When asked about special moments from his time at Liverpool, he replied: "I'm not in the mood to think about it." First of all, it's about "squeezing everything out of this season." The Reds are currently leaders in the Premier League and will play at home in the cup next Sunday against second division side Norwich City (3:30 p.m.; stream: DAZN).
Never coach in England again
It seems that their coach's resignation announcement did not come as a shock to the players. »The players didn't ask much. We have a strong connection, we are professionals," said Klopp. "It's not as emotional as it will be when the end comes."
Klopp cannot yet imagine what his life will look like after the last game of the season. »I don't know what normal is. I have to find out first." However, he made it clear that he would be taking a break from the football business. "No club, no country for next year," he said and promised never to coach another English club again. Not even if he “had nothing left to eat.”
Klopp's statements contradict initial speculation that he could be a candidate for a possible national coach search in the summer. Incumbent Julian Nagelsmann's contract initially only runs until after the home European Championships in the summer.
mlb/dpa