Liverpool assistant boss Pep Lijnders is appointed Red Bull Salzburg manager – with fellow Reds coach Vitor Matos to join Jurgen Klopp’s No 2 in Austria
- Pep Lijnders was Jurgen Klopp’s assistant for most of his time at Liverpool
- He left in 2018 to manage the Dutch NEC for five months before returning
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Jurgen Klopp’s right-hand man Pep Lijnders has signed a three-year contract to become manager of Austrian side Red Bull Salzburg.
The Dutchman will follow Klopp out of Anfield this weekend to pursue a career in first-team management and will take up his first post with the Austrian giants, alongside fellow Liverpool coach Vitor Matos as assistant.
Mail Sport reported yesterday how Lijnders was close to a deal to join Salzburg after being considered for the position at Ajax and Besiktas. The Austrian team is second in the rankings, behind leader Sturm Graz.
Lijnders said: ‘I am very proud to become the new head coach of Red Bull Salzburg. This is a real privilege for me. After PSV Eindhoven, Porto and Liverpool, I am now moving to another exceptional club with a very good structure and a special focus on youth development.
‘I want to develop a mentality in the team that places a lot of emphasis on the attacking playing style and where passion and hunger for success are the basis of everything.
Liverpool assistant boss Pep Lijnders will take over as head coach of Red Bull Salzburg
Lijnders – who spent most of his time at Anfield as Klopp’s assistant manager – will take up the post at the Austrian side following his departure from the Reds at the end of the season
Lijnders (left) won seven trophies during his extremely decorated spell at Liverpool
He will be joined by fellow Reds coach Vitor Matos (left), who will be his assistant in Austria
‘Together with my assistant coach Vitor Matos and the entire support team, we will do our best to help the club continue to grow in an ever-changing football world.
‘My family have visited the city before and were overwhelmed by the beauty and friendliness of the people. That was the last and important step for me in choosing Salzburg.’
Lijnders had a brief attempt at first-team management in 2018 but did not last long at Dutch side NEC Nijmegen and returned to Klopp’s side, writing a tell-all autobiography titled Intensity.
Some fans accused Lijnders of ‘spilling the beans’ with that memoir, but he is also being billed as the brains of Klopp’s close-knit coaching team alongside long-term ally Peter Krawietz, who is also leaving this week.
After taking over as coach in 2014, the Dutchman left in 2018 to take over at Dutch second-tier side NEC, before returning just six months later after being sacked from the role.
Lijnders replaces former Salzburg boss Gerhard Struber, who was fired last month
But Klopp believes Lijnders is more than ready to make the move – and has said so many times in the months since he announced his departure. The Dutch coach, who speaks five languages, first joined the Reds in 2014.
Matos has been hailed as the ‘link’ between Liverpool’s youth academy and the first team. His official title at Anfield was elite development coach and his role was to help youngsters – such as Conor Bradley and Jarell Quansah this season – make the step up to the regular first-team squad.
Other backroom staff members Andreas Kornmayer and Andreas Schlumberger, as well as two goalkeeping coaches, will also leave Anfield.