Jurgen Klopp admits next season would have been ‘tricky’ if he had stayed at Liverpool – but insists he WILL be back to watch games at Anfield… ‘even if the next manager doesn’t like it!’
- Jurgen Klopp will leave Liverpool at the end of the season after nine years
- But he has promised he will return to Anfield to watch the matches in the stands
- Time for heavy metal football, Jurgen! Liverpool’s clash with Tottenham is chance to remind fans of those days – Listen to the It all starts! podcast
Jurgen Klopp believes that had he not made the shock decision to leave Liverpool at the end of the season, the club would have struggled next year.
The 56-year-old has just three games left as manager of the Reds after nine years at the helm on Merseyside.
In January, Klopp surprised the football world by announcing he would be leaving Liverpool at the end of the current season.
It doesn’t look like Klopp will get the fairytale ending of a Premier League title after a major dip in form at the Reds, and he doesn’t think next season would have gone any smoother if he had stayed at the club.
‘The football has not been great in recent weeks and that is why you hear people say that I look very tired. I’m just old,” Klopp said in an interview with Air sports.
Jurgen Klopp believes Liverpool will struggle next season if he remains in charge
The German won the Premier League title in 2020 but will leave at the end of this season
Klopp thought he looked tired as he called time on nine years at Anfield
‘My intention is to give 100 percent until the last day. That was always the plan. I was sure that if I hadn’t made that decision now, next year could be difficult. The thought of picking yourself up for another preseason makes big decisions.
‘You really have to be full of energy for that. 80 percent is not enough. That is the truth. It is too much. It’s a 24/7 job. Yes, there are more important things in life, but if you really care, it’s 24/7.
‘I’ve been doing it for quite a long time and I knew I couldn’t keep doing it at the level needed for a club like Liverpool.’
With Klopp in the dugout, Liverpool have achieved their fair share of domestic victories. They reigned supreme in the Premier League in 2020, winning the FA Cup and triumphing twice in the Carabao Cup – including this campaign.
They also won the Champions League in 2019 and clinched the Club World Cup and UEFA Super Cup in the same year.
Klopp has become a messianic figure to the Liverpool faithful because of what he achieved during his time at the club.
It is clear that the bond between the fans and Klopp has formed both ways and the German boss is not willing to completely remove himself from the Reds.
Klopp guaranteed he would sign off with silverware after winning the Carabao Cup in February
Klopp says he will be back to watch Liverpool in the stands in the future
Feyenoord’s Arne Slot is expected to replace Klopp as Liverpool’s new manager this summer
“It’s going to be super tough not to be a part of it the way I am now – because I’m going to continue to be a part of it, I will.
“I’ll come and watch games and if whoever becomes the next manager doesn’t like me in the stands, I don’t care this time.”
Liverpool have just two home games remaining this season and sit third in the Premier League with 75 points, having already secured Champions League football.
Although Klopp’s farewell is fast approaching, a replacement for next season appears to be nearing completion as Feyenoord manager Arne Slot approaches the Anfield dugout.
Both Liverpool and Feyenoord have agreed a deal that will see Slot succeed Klopp with a £9 million compensation package.
For now, though, Liverpool fans are preparing for Klopp’s farewell, with his penultimate match at Anfield against Tottenham next on Sunday.