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Jurgen Klopp last season did what the likes of Graeme Souness, Roy Evans, Gerard Houllier, Rafa Benitez, Roy Hodgson, and Brendan Rogers had all failed to do before him, and brought the Premier League title back to Anfield for the first time in 30 years, a year after leading them to success in the Champions League final.
And, when he was in charge of Borussia Dortmund back in his native Germany, he helped his team challenge the monopoly on domestic titles in the country.
An unspectacular playing career as a defender with Mainz saw him move seamlessly into the manager’s job at the same club aged just 34.
Since then his teams have become known for their high-energy, high-tempo, Gegenpressing style, based on trying to regain lost possession at the earliest opportunity. He has also become known for his ability to identify with the fans and the players of the clubs that he manages, as well as the emotion that he shows on the touchline.
Popular, not only with Liverpool and Dortmund fans, but throughout the game, he has delivered many good soundbites in his time.
Here are some quotes on Jurgen Klopp from his fellow managers and former players:
“There is no facade with Jurgen. There is no show for the cameras. He is a massive personality and a great motivator of men.
-Peter Moore
“One title you’ve won and you’re f*****g giving it the big ‘un F*** off!”
[After beating Brighton 5 – 0]“Should be enough to save Klopp’s job.”
“When he [Klopp] was appointed everyone was really excited. And he nailed himself to the people when he said, ‘I’m the normal one’.
“Because that’s what the Liverpool people are. They just want people to be normal, very good at their job, but they don’t need it slammed in their face every two minutes.
“Jürgen electrified a whole city. He blew away the depression with his speeches.”
– Mainz Sporting Director, Christian Heidel
“He’s a strong personality, very strong, very stubborn, determined and his performances, and his career at Dortmund was a stellar rise to the top and I think he’ll do very well.
“I don’t like saying that, being Liverpool, because I’m worried about it but, no, he’ll do well.”
“I always had little thoughts as I’ve gone along. Should I have stayed at Liverpool? Should I have signed a year extension? Maybe I might have been able to have that cameo under Jurgen Klopp as maybe a squad player.
“These things always cross my mind but, look, I made decisions. I am very proud of my Liverpool career, I am very proud of where I am up to now in my management. I want to give that my full focus and keep trying to learn and grow and improve and see where that journey takes me now.
“But, of course, you always have little moments—imagine if I’d stayed at Liverpool a bit longer and maybe I’d bumped into Klopp, as someone who could maybe have given him 10-15 minutes off the bench. Of course it has crossed my mind—I would have loved that.”
“For me, this [comeback] has one name—Jurgen. This is about him. This is a reflection of his personality—don’t give up—his fighting spirit, every player giving everything. He’s not crying because he’s missing [injured] players, he’s not crying because they’re playing 50 or 60 matches a season. … Today is about Jurgen’s mentality. This is not about tactics, not about philosophy. This is about heart and soul and fantastic empathy he has created with that group of players.“
“Maybe Klopp is the best manager in the world at creating teams who attack the back four with so many players, from almost anywhere on the pitch. They have an intensity with the ball and without the ball, and it is not easy to do that.
“The toughest opponent I’ve faced in my career has been this Liverpool from the last year,”
“I have a great relationship with [Jurgen] Klopp. Klopp is the architect behind the success of this team, not only in the Premier League – but also for what he managed to do during these five years since his arrival. With a lot of patience, he was able to build a perfect machine.”
– Carlo Ancelotti
“Of course there are coaches here in the Premier League when you enter the competition with not only the best clubs but also the best coaches in the world, one of them is Jurgen, clearly, and he has proven that at many clubs.
“It brings me out of bed early because it is a challenge for me to play against him. He is a genius but in the end we will not meet up for a game of tennis, we play with our teams and we have to be prepared.
“Jurgen has proved to be outstanding, he transforms any club into a unit and, at all the three clubs he has worked at, he has been a big part of them, with the heart of the fans. He is a huge success.”
-Thomas Tuchel
Here are some of the best quotes about Klopp by players:
“Jurgen Klopp’s the kind of manager you’d run through fire for”
– Robert Lewandoski
“If you think as supporters you appreciate what he has done for this club, you can multiply that by a hundred for the team: he is our leader – he has set the tone for all of this from the day he walked in. As I have said previously, and as the manager has said himself, he took over from great foundations laid by Sir Kenny and Brendan (Rodgers), and from players like Stevie (Gerrard).
“But he, more than anyone in my eyes, is the reason we are here now about to collect this club’s first league title in 30 years.”
-Jordan Henderson
“Oh my god, Jurgen was such an animal! You only knew somebody like him from TV. If Jurgen sits in front of you with his aura, with his aggressiveness, which he radiates even when speaking, with his size, then that is quite impressive. Even the way he talks to you – this is rarely the case in professional business.
He pulls you under his spell and will not let you go. I left the conversation with a fluttering heart. He was definitely one of the reasons why I signed for Dortmund.”
– Marco Reus
“He is never negative. He’s never let our heads go down, he’s always been motivating the team, letting us know what we are capable of, what we demonstrated last year and for us to look ahead. He knows what we can achieve.”
-Roberto Firmino
“What makes him special is that he never stops believing. In the meeting before the game he was really convinced that we could do it, even though we were missing two of the best players in the world [Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino].
“He pushed the boys hard to give everything possible and tried to take the pressure off us.”
– Sadio Mane
“Like a father to all of us”
– Adrian
Here are some of the best footballer quotes by Jürgen Klopp.
20
“I’m a totally normal guy, I came from the Black Forest. I’m the Normal One.”
19
“I never succeeded in bringing to the field what was going on in my brain. I had the talent for the fifth division, and the mind for the Bundesliga. The result was a career in the second division.”
18
“When I left school, the head said, ‘I hope you can do something in football because, if not, I have not the best feeling for your future.'”
17
“You have to feel a defeat. You cannot say ‘I don’t care, it’s not important’. It was important and we lost, so that feels not too good. You always have to strike back. We can say all of these things, but you know you can fall down and then you have to stand up. That’s the truth, but it’s completely normal – only silly idiots stay on the floor and wait for the next defeat.”
16
“Go through the world and find me a team who can finish as champions in the same league as Bayern. If we should finish second this summer, I’ll find a truck and drive it through my garden. If nobody will rejoice, I’ll do it alone.”
15
“I have been four and a half years in this country and I never heard that word before. What is ‘inevitable’? As far as I’m concerned, we are not even mathematically qualified for the Champions League yet.”
14
“He likes having the ball, playing football, passes. It’s like an orchestra. But it’s a silent song. But I like heavy metal more. I always want it loud.”
13
“The world at the moment is a circus with us at the centre. I am not influenced by it.”
12
“It’s not important because who wants to be first in November? You want to be first in May. It’s only November. The pressure is not there yet. It will come,” – after beating title rivals Manchester City at Anfield.”
11
“A couple of years ago, three or four maybe, in the beginning, I said we want to write our own stories, we want to create our own history. Obviously, the boys took really seriously what I said there and that’s all cool.”
10
“Yes, it’s true. I underwent a hair transplant. I think the results are really cool, don’t you?”
9
“He’s leaving because he’s Guardiola’s favourite. If it’s anyone’s fault, it’s mine. I can’t make myself shorter and learn Spanish.”
8
“I told my players during the break: Since we’re here anyway, we might actually play a bit of football.”
7
“I’m a bit proud of my first red card as coach. I approached the fourth official and said: ‘How many mistakes are allowed here? If it is 15, you have one more.’”
6
“If that’s not a bull**** story, I’ll eat a broomstick!”
5
“We have a bow and arrow and if we aim well, we can hit the target. The problem is that Bayern has a bazooka. The probability that they will hit the target is clearly higher. But then Robin Hood was apparently quite successful.”
4
“We will wait for him like a good wife waiting for her husband who is in jail.”
3
“Mkhitaryan fits us like an arse on a bucket. What he offers is exactly what we need.”
2
“When Dortmund last won here 19 years ago, most of my players were still being breast-fed.”
1
“If you go nuts and start taking drugs and drinking and driving different cars or whatever and leave your missus at home because you are now the Champions League winner, then I can’t help you”.
Andy is an exiled English football fan living in Cyprus. He loves all sports but football is his abiding passion, and he still has dreams every now and then about scoring the winning goal in a Wembley Cup Final, even though his playing days are long gone. He follows most major leagues, across Europe at least, and has a favoured team in each. When he’s not watching, listening, reading or downloading podcasts about football, he spend his time worrying about his beloved Arsenal.