Jurgen Norbert Klopp

[gkmacca]

2 hours ago, VladimirIlyich said:

I like Roy and think he is a true Liverpool and football man but I feel he could have been a bit more respectful to Houllier despite his own obvious disappointment. Maybe Houllier was a bit of an arsehole or arrogant towards him? But Roy has to recognise that Houllier,not him,was exactly what was needed at that time.

Was he having a go at Ged? It read to me a though he was just saying the joint manager idea was crap for both of them.

[dockers_strike]

The joint managers thing was a shit idea but the club didnt really want to sack Roy at that point as he was a loyal guy respected within the club.

 

I think Roy knew he was on borrowed time when he and Ged were made joint managers. I dont think there was friction between Ged and Roy, just Roy knew he was always going to be the fall guy. I dont think St John, who was a big friend of Roy's, helped the situation by always referring to Ged as 'the frenchman.'

 

There was a good article in the torygraph I posted not long ago about Roy and this joint manager thing. He doesnt seem to bad mouthed Ged but highlighted the players would side with either him or Ged depending what they wanted to hear etc.

 

Basically, I think the club should have made a clean break of it. Seeing Roy in tears during the presser when his resignation was announced is horrible to watch.

[dockers_strike]

An interesting read.

 

Ahead of the second seismic meeting of Liverpool and Manchester City in a week, one issue weighs heavy on the minds of those in charge of England's current pre-eminent clubs: who could possibly succeed their totemic managers? 

 

Chris Bascombe and (removed the shit about Guardiola because Im not fucking interested in him!) analyse when Jürgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola might depart their stages in England, and what their employers are doing to prepare for that day.

Jürgen Klopp

By Chris Bascombe

What are the chances of Klopp staying beyond his current contract?

Within hours of Liverpool winning their sixth European Cup, Fenway Sports Group’s senior executives were walking through the interview zone at Madrid’s Wanda Metropolitano when they were met with a pressing question.

 

“When are you going to get Klopp to sign another contract?”

Klopp still had three years left to run on his existing deal in the summer of 2019, the situation nowhere near as urgent as it will become over the course of the next 18 months, with the manager's contract due to expire in 2024. Nevertheless, FSG had an eye on the long-term as much as here and now.

 

Their immediate answer was - in time -  to gently persuade Klopp to extend his terms without exerting pressure but on the understanding when he felt it right, the details would be swiftly drawn up. There was even a tentative willingness to entertain the idea of a sabbatical, with Klopp taking a year out with his family to re-energise, returning after an assistant had kept the engine running. It was unnecessary, with Klopp putting pen to paper six months later.

 

The situation is similar now, albeit there is less time before his deal expires. Fenway have identified who they wish to be in charge beyond the next two years - Klopp himself. One day, his public reticence to continue will be accompanied by a private confirmation that FSG must identify his replacement. Until then, the club will be assessing a volatile market, aware that the ideal successor today may not be in 2024, while others may have emerged over the course of two years.

What is the blueprint for the next coach?

Liverpool’s criteria will be as it was when recruiting Brendan Rodgers in 2012 and Klopp in 2015. Overperformance metrics are fundamental. They are most impressed by those who shine against teams with bigger salaries and budgets.

 

Klopp was able to make it look like a level playing field against Bayern Munich on the pitch when, off it, that was far from the case. Dortmund have not won the Bundesliga since Klopp left. He has replicated that in England where Manchester United, Chelsea and - obviously - Manchester City’s resources are greater.

 

That is the challenge for a contender like Steven Gerrard. Much as Gerrard and Aston Villa do not want his stint in the Midlands to be regarded as an apprenticeship, if he excels he will obviously be on the shortlist. But no-one knows better than Gerrard he must prove himself more than an emotional choice.

 

On one hand Gerrard needs boardroom backing to underline his credentials at Villa - willingly accepting the ambition to make Philippe Coutinho’s move permanent - yet in some respects there would be more admiration if he led his side to seventh with the 12th-lowest Premier League salary than sixth with the sixth biggest. Again, the overperformance criteria is key.

 

That is why seemingly obvious choices - those who have just won titles in the major European leagues with the biggest salary and recruitment spending - will not necessarily be as attractive as appearances suggest.

 

That said, Liverpool are in a different world than when Rodgers and Roberto Martinez were the leading candidates in 2012. Ten years ago, a coach such as Brighton’s Graham Potter would have been on John W Henry’s radar - all the data pointing to someone who produces a modern brand of football without significant wealth.

 

Liverpool are in a different place now. They will have their pick of the best of the best in 2024 when Klopp goes, able to interview the elite coaches with a recent history of trophy collection.

 

Having said all that, the Liverpool manager’s job is also about more than coaching, and the club are aware that the man who leads the team also has to connect with Anfield emotionally and even politically, given the city has not returned a Conservative MP since 1979. FSG’s due diligence will have to take this into account, which always makes it trickier at Liverpool than at other clubs.

 

But who might emerge over the next two years who will naturally ‘get’ Liverpool? What if Xabi Alonso - currently managing Real Sociedad ‘B’ team - takes a high profile European job and thrives? Which sides might emerge in Germany, Spain and Italy to disrupt the status quo, led by young, vibrant coaches who can pick up Klopp’s baton?

Who will lead the search?

Michael Gordon and sporting director Julian Ward, who will replace Michael Edwards this summer, will lead, while in the background the data team led by director of research Ian Graham are tasked with keeping a due diligence file on every coach (and players) of interest.

Welshman Graham - a Cambridge graduate with a PhD in physics - joined Liverpool in 2012.

 

He had previously worked at Decision Technology, forecasting consumer behaviour to enable businesses to maximise their profits. At Anfield he formed a four-man unit independent of the coaching staff, providing dossiers which have contributed to the club’s successful recruitment policy. 

 

Graham tracked Klopp for years and was instrumental in reassuring FSG that he had to be Liverpool’s number one target when the decision was taken to dismiss Rodgers, presenting the owners with a research paper on the German manager’s 10 Bundesliga seasons. For example, Graham’s data regarding Dortmund’s performances showed that a decline in Klopp’s final season in Germany was an anomaly which did not reflect the quality of performances. 

 

Liverpool-born Ward has worked alongside Edwards for the last nine years, having previously scouted for Manchester City and the Portugal national team. When Edwards announced he was leaving at the end of this season, FSG confirmed Ward’s promotion. Some might argue Edwards saw a tricky future ahead if Klopp leaves. Finding a successor will be an unenviable task.

 

A more positive appraisal is what better way to choreograph a new sporting director's introduction than to credit him for having convinced Klopp to commit for another two years. Perhaps that is too cynically optimistic.

 

FSG president Gordon is Liverpool’s modern Peter Robinson. Never heard, rarely seen, completely without ego, but smart and resolute when it comes to ‘sticking to the plan’. The relationship of trust between him and Klopp is at the heart of the Anfield revival.

 

You can be sure the more Gordon and Ward are searching and researching, the greater their hope their number one choice - Klopp himself - is seduced by the chance to go beyond his 10th anniversary. As Klopp accepted in 2019, walking away from a dream job, and a dream team, is easier in theory than reality.

Is continuity a key consideration?

Liverpool will face the same dilemma as Sir John Smith and Peter Robinson in 1974: how do you replace the Godfather of your success?

When Bill Shankly stepped aside they found the answer within. Current assistant Pep Lijnders will hope the spirit of boot room transition lives on.

 

There is no suggestion from the top that Lijnders is being primed to be the next Bob Paisley or Joe Fagan, but as someone who knows the training ground drills, and is integral to the culture it would be insane if a Klopp exit triggered a ‘brain drain’ of his backroom staff, especially as so many of the squad have deals beyond 2024 and are so comfortable with the current routines.

 

Klopp will feel responsibility for those whose enduring Anfield employment will rely on him. New managers always tend to bring an army of lieutenants with them, changing the dynamic at the training ground. That is dangerous when so little at Liverpool needs to change.

Anything threatening continuity (or as close to it when the main man is no longer around) post 2024 would be dangerous, so the next man must understand and respect that.

 

The hope must be that they are willing and capable of working with those that Klopp leaves behind, and that those who were hired by Klopp will wish to stay if asked.

 

The fact that Klopp is not likely to leave for another job, taking his staff with him, might help. Liverpool had to start again in 2015. If Klopp really does call it quits, there will be no debris to sweep away in 2024.

 

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2022/04/15/happens-irreplaceable-jurgen-klopp-pep-guardiola-leave/

[Tj hooker]

Its quite simple this problem make Klopp an offer he can't refuse just like Vito Corleone did in the Godfather. 

[etho]

Interesting we were willing to offer the sabbatical even then. Think there may come a point where that might appeal. Hopefully down the line from 2024 though

[luxury_scruff]

These are our salad days, slowly being eaten away...

[AngryOfTuebrook]

Damn, I love our manager!

[aws]

5 minutes ago, AngryOfTuebrook said:

Damn, I love our manager!

Do you feel fine about it? 

[AngryOfTuebrook]

Just now, aws said:

Do you feel fine about it? 

Yes. Yes I do.

[Supremolad]

The last 7 games between them over the past 3 seasons - 2 wins each and 3 draws. Reports of Pep figuring Klopp out have been greatly exaggerated.

[Oh Buoy]

The perfect man for a beautiful club. 

 

I hope this romance never ends. 

[an tha]

I'm so glad that Jurgen is a red....

 

 

[dockers_strike]

All his career, Jürgen Klopp has inspired a devotion from fans approaching idolatry. For his farewell at Mainz, 15,000 saluted him in the city’s main square. When he left Dortmund, a teeming Yellow Wall unfurled a “Danke, Jürgen” banner the size of a small cornfield. What outpourings might one day herald his departure from Liverpool? For his disciples in red, it honestly does not bear thinking about.

 

They converged on Wembley to toast not just their irrepressible team but a manager who could yet fulfil a quest that all before him, the crestfallen Pep Guardiola included, have found impossible. Yes, the quadruple is now truly in his clasp.

 

It was a delirious atmosphere inside Wembley, a springtime cacophony played out amid the smoke from dozens of red flares Liverpool supporters had somehow smuggled past security. To think, there had been suggestions that many might struggle to travel here due to Easter rail works on the West Coast mainline. Some hope. Klopp is a man who could entice the true believers to follow him to the outer moons of Neptune.

 

As the final whistle sounded on this watershed victory over Manchester City, against whose standard Liverpool are so often compared, Klopp motioned initially to head down the tunnel. Instead, he turned on his heels, sprinting on to the pitch to perform four theatrical fist-pumps. Perhaps the number was coincidental.

 

Traditionally, the quadruple has been a frontier so remote that Guardiola would refuse to hear the word uttered in his presence. But for the next six weeks, everything Klopp does will be framed by the pursuit of glory on all four fronts. “Let’s go for it,” he grinned.

Already, his Liverpool players have gone further than any Premier League team before them to keep the idea alive. Even in 2019, the year that City won an unprecedented domestic treble, talk of the “quad” expired with a Champions League defeat to Tottenham on April 17. Last year, the plan was sabotaged on the same date by the first of three consecutive defeats to Chelsea. Barring any implosion in the league, Liverpool should still be masters of their own ultimate destiny come May.

 

On this evidence, you would not put anything past them. This season, Klopp has brought his fanbase to a pitch of overwhelming emotion. Liverpool dwarfed City in every department at Wembley, the energy of the players matched by the cascade of passion from the stands.

 

Seldom can an FA Cup semi-final on neutral ground have felt so powerfully like a home game. It is one of the quirks of the Klopp era that this was the first time Liverpool had reached the last four during his tenure. The manner of the breakthrough, Ibrahima Konaté racing on to Andrew Robertson’s corner to bury a header beyond Zack Steffen, illustrated a resolve to savour every moment.

 

If the second goal was a gift courtesy of the hapless Steffen, the third, lashed in emphatically by Sadio Mané, made even Klopp puff out his cheeks in admiration. For 45 minutes, Liverpool had achieved the last word in what he had once called “heavy metal football”, pressing so high and so relentlessly that City’s stand-in goalkeeper was punished for just a split-second’s dawdling.

 

You look at Klopp in this mood and you realise that Liverpool could not have a machine-tooled a manager more perfectly in sync with their character. The reason he became so adored in Mainz and Dortmund is that he brought not simply technical mastery to the job, but soul.

 

Klopp’s connection with Liverpool also has an authenticity that cannot be confected. His unveiling in 2015 was stamped indelibly by his little tap on the This Is Anfield tunnel badge. Even when he fell short in the 2018 Champions League final in Kyiv, he was still filmed singing the 'Allez, allez, allez' chant with bedraggled fans at 6am.

 

If you think their love for Klopp is exaggerated, just contrast his electrifying influence with the grim regression at Manchester United over the same seven years. While figures such as Jose Mourinho and Ralf Rangnick have only ever looked as if they are passing through, Klopp builds an impression of permanence, the sense of a project. His approach is one of total immersion, and it has propelled Liverpool to the undreamt-of heights of winning a title by 18 points and closing in on a quadruple that defies all known rules of endurance.

 

The consensus until recently was that few coaches of the modern era could hold a candle to Guardiola. Except Klopp has just become the first to beat him 10 times. In the endless comparisons between two teams and two managers of generational brilliance, there is an argument that Klopp is now edging in front.

 

The justification lies less in the numbers than in the strength of the bonds he has forged. At 54, Klopp has presided over three clubs and attained the status of a demigod at every one. He has never been a mere gun for hire. He is that rare breed, a true football alchemist, whose pomp we should relish while it lasts.

 

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2022/04/16/jurgen-klopp-footballing-alchemist-manager-like-no/

[Colonel Bumcunt]

[House of Dirk]

My fear is he wins everything and then he has done at all. Even if he wins the FA Cup, he has the set.

 

Just lock him in his office.

[House of Dirk]

On a far more serious note, this man. This team !

 

We have seen a transformation since his arrival in October 2015, starting with making good of the resources he inherited to take us to two cup finals. We didnt win either, not for the want of trying, but there was reasons for optimism, reasons to be cheerful.

 

Getting us back into the Champions league and keeping us on there on a consistent basis, building a sustainable squad of talent and playing quality football. Getting big results. Wasnt all plain sailing up against sportwashing from that lot up the road, heartbreak in Kyiv, the Buvac stuff that caused a temporary blip, the feeling we were close but no doughnut.

 

Then Barca in 2019 leading us to number 7 , then world champions, then the big one after a 30 year famine, albeit in strange circumstances, but no taking it away from us. We earned that by right, and in all reality, few disagree with that. a blip last year through, once again, extraordinary circumstances, but we finished with optimism.

 

In an age where money speaks for almost everything, this remarkable man has a remarkable team in his own image. Personal records, goals, a team that is possibly technically the best we have ever seen, even though its diffficult to compare across era's. We are shortly going to have three players on the books with 100 or more goals for the club (someone give Bobby the penalties just to make sure)

 

We are probably coming towards the end of Phase 2 of Jurgens generation of players, but the dynasty is still to continue. Hopefully we can give Jurgen what he wants to stay for as long as he wants. As dads and grandads would have spoken to most of us about Shanks, we can do the same for our kids and grandkids with Jurgen.

 

City will eventually 'win' a champions league. They will have spent a fuck tonne of money doing so. Chelsea have only managed to buy 2 in the same time that we have won 2.  And it wont mean anything when they do. Their fans see us as rivals because they hate what we have. The unity and togetherness as well as meaningful history. They could buy all the trophies for years to come and they still couldnt be us.

 

I grew up in Uncle Joe's era, which of course was continued sustained success. Kenny was my hero through hard times in the 80's. Jurgen's era coincided with difficult times in my life, where not much was going for me, but his stewardship was giving me something to believe in. life is a bit different now, with a whole new set of problems, but fuck me, its more tolerable with this man leading our Redmen.

[KMD7]

7 hours ago, House of Dirk said:

On a far more serious note, this man. This team !

 

We have seen a transformation since his arrival in October 2015, starting with making good of the resources he inherited to take us to two cup finals. We didnt win either, not for the want of trying, but there was reasons for optimism, reasons to be cheerful.

 

Getting us back into the Champions league and keeping us on there on a consistent basis, building a sustainable squad of talent and playing quality football. Getting big results. Wasnt all plain sailing up against sportwashing from that lot up the road, heartbreak in Kyiv, the Buvac stuff that caused a temporary blip, the feeling we were close but no doughnut.

 

Then Barca in 2019 leading us to number 7 , then world champions, then the big one after a 30 year famine, albeit in strange circumstances, but no taking it away from us. We earned that by right, and in all reality, few disagree with that. a blip last year through, once again, extraordinary circumstances, but we finished with optimism.

 

In an age where money speaks for almost everything, this remarkable man has a remarkable team in his own image. Personal records, goals, a team that is possibly technically the best we have ever seen, even though its diffficult to compare across era's. We are shortly going to have three players on the books with 100 or more goals for the club (someone give Bobby the penalties just to make sure)

 

We are probably coming towards the end of Phase 2 of Jurgens generation of players, but the dynasty is still to continue. Hopefully we can give Jurgen what he wants to stay for as long as he wants. As dads and grandads would have spoken to most of us about Shanks, we can do the same for our kids and grandkids with Jurgen.

 

City will eventually 'win' a champions league. They will have spent a fuck tonne of money doing so. Chelsea have only managed to buy 2 in the same time that we have won 2.  And it wont mean anything when they do. Their fans see us as rivals because they hate what we have. The unity and togetherness as well as meaningful history. They could buy all the trophies for years to come and they still couldnt be us.

 

I grew up in Uncle Joe's era, which of course was continued sustained success. Kenny was my hero through hard times in the 80's. Jurgen's era coincided with difficult times in my life, where not much was going for me, but his stewardship was giving me something to believe in. life is a bit different now, with a whole new set of problems, but fuck me, its more tolerable with this man leading our Redmen.

Beautiful mate. Hope you're doing well now.

[Kevin D]

11 hours ago, an tha said:

I'm so glad that Jurgen is a red....

 

 

 

You sure you feel okay, mate?

[Colonel Bumcunt]

9 hours ago, House of Dirk said:

My fear is he wins everything and then he has done at all. Even if he wins the FA Cup, he has the set.

 

Just lock him in his office.

Klopp lives in the moment.  He's addicted to life and having a good time.  I don't see a better fit for him than Liverpool, perhaps other than St Pauli. 

[Colonel Bumcunt]

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/blogs/soccer-dirty-tackle/st--pauli-caterer-declares-her-support-for-jurgen-klopp-during-press-conference--makes-klopp-feel-really-uncomfortable-204224585.html

[Chairman Meow]

If Klopp has spent the same kind of money on us as Pep has on City they'd have to cancel all football as it would be impossible for anyone else to win anything. 

[Chairman Meow]

6 minutes ago, Colonel Bumcunt said:

Klopp lives in the moment.  He's addicted to life and having a good time.  I don't see a better fit for him than Liverpool, perhaps other than St Pauli. 

 

I really don't want to see him leave us, but him being successful at St Pauli would be a joy to see. 

[Colonel Bumcunt]

https://www.football365.com/news/gotze-recalls-klopp-f-bomb-tells-hair-transplant-story#:~:text=Mario Gotze has paid tribute,naturally funny” manager in football.&text=Now back at Dortmund%2C the,of his hair transplant doctor.

[Carvalho Diablo]

10 hours ago, House of Dirk said:

On a far more serious note, this man. This team !

 

We have seen a transformation since his arrival in October 2015, starting with making good of the resources he inherited to take us to two cup finals. We didnt win either, not for the want of trying, but there was reasons for optimism, reasons to be cheerful.

 

Getting us back into the Champions league and keeping us on there on a consistent basis, building a sustainable squad of talent and playing quality football. Getting big results. Wasnt all plain sailing up against sportwashing from that lot up the road, heartbreak in Kyiv, the Buvac stuff that caused a temporary blip, the feeling we were close but no doughnut.

 

Then Barca in 2019 leading us to number 7 , then world champions, then the big one after a 30 year famine, albeit in strange circumstances, but no taking it away from us. We earned that by right, and in all reality, few disagree with that. a blip last year through, once again, extraordinary circumstances, but we finished with optimism.

 

In an age where money speaks for almost everything, this remarkable man has a remarkable team in his own image. Personal records, goals, a team that is possibly technically the best we have ever seen, even though its diffficult to compare across era's. We are shortly going to have three players on the books with 100 or more goals for the club (someone give Bobby the penalties just to make sure)

 

We are probably coming towards the end of Phase 2 of Jurgens generation of players, but the dynasty is still to continue. Hopefully we can give Jurgen what he wants to stay for as long as he wants. As dads and grandads would have spoken to most of us about Shanks, we can do the same for our kids and grandkids with Jurgen.

 

City will eventually 'win' a champions league. They will have spent a fuck tonne of money doing so. Chelsea have only managed to buy 2 in the same time that we have won 2.  And it wont mean anything when they do. Their fans see us as rivals because they hate what we have. The unity and togetherness as well as meaningful history. They could buy all the trophies for years to come and they still couldnt be us.

 

I grew up in Uncle Joe's era, which of course was continued sustained success. Kenny was my hero through hard times in the 80's. Jurgen's era coincided with difficult times in my life, where not much was going for me, but his stewardship was giving me something to believe in. life is a bit different now, with a whole new set of problems, but fuck me, its more tolerable with this man leading our Redmen.

Smashing post that. Still out of rep unfortunately, would someone do me the honours please.

[Carvalho Diablo]

35 minutes ago, Colonel Bumcunt said:

https://www.football365.com/news/gotze-recalls-klopp-f-bomb-tells-hair-transplant-story#:~:text=Mario Gotze has paid tribute,naturally funny” manager in football.&text=Now back at Dortmund%2C the,of his hair transplant doctor.

Argh Bumcunt, you've got to be a subscriber to read that.