Pep Guardiola is moved to tears by Jurgen Klopp’s praise and insists ‘I will miss him a lot’ – after the German’s final game as Liverpool manager
- Jürgen Klopp had his last game in charge of Liverpool on Sunday afternoon
- The German has enjoyed a memorable rivalry with Man City boss Pep Guardiola
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Pep Guardiola struggled to hold back tears as he responded to a question about Jurgen Klopp after the German’s final game as Liverpool manager.
The Manchester City boss saw his side clinch a sixth Premier League title in seven years on Sunday after a 3-1 win over West Ham at the Etihad.
Klopp’s Liverpool were the only team to disrupt that monopoly and Guardiola was full of emotions as he paid tribute to his great rival as he entered pastures new.
“I will miss him very much,” Guardiola said. ‘Jurgen has been a very important part of my life. He has taken me to another level as a manager.
‘I think we have an incredible amount of respect for each other. I have a feeling he’ll come back. I would like to thank you very much for his words.
An emotional Pep Guardiola reflected on his rivalry with Jurgen Klopp following the German’s departure from Liverpool
Guardiola and Klopp have had a memorable rivalry during their time at Man City and Liverpool
‘But he knows perfectly well that behind me there are many things that this club offers and gives me.’
On Friday, Klopp had said that the Spaniard is the ‘best manager in the world’. He added: ‘If you put another manager in that club they won’t win the league four times in a row. That’s up to him and his team.’
The rivalry between Klopp and Guardiola was characterized by the incredible consistency of their team’s results.
The pair’s teams have recorded the four highest points totals in Premier League history and the four longest winning streaks.
As City celebrated a record fourth successive title, the Reds bid an emotional farewell to the German manager after a 2-0 win against Wolves.
Jarrell Quansah had the honor of scoring the final goal of Klopp’s tenure, but in reality the match was just a prelude to the emotional farewell.
Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold couldn’t hold back the tears as they hugged Jurgen Klopp after his last game in charge.
After embracing all his players, Klopp addressed the Anfield crowd and encouraged them to get behind new boss Arne Slot, who revealed on Friday he will replace Klopp next season.
Klopp said an emotional farewell to Liverpool supporters on Sunday after their victory over Wolves
Klopp then performed his trademark fist bumps in front of the Kop as he received the adulation of the fans.
Klopp is making it a point after guiding Liverpool to third place in the Premier League, with his team finishing nine points behind champions Manchester City in his final season at the helm.