Jurgen Klopp’s announcement that he is to depart Liverpool at the end of the season will leave the club’s supporters heartbroken and send shockwaves way beyond Anfield.
The charismatic German’s force of personality and successes have given him iconic status at Liverpool, the club he has transformed since his appointment in October 2015. Klopp can stand comfortably in the list of great Anfield managers.
The news came as a bolt from the blue, especially having signed a contract extension taking him through to 2026 as a sign of his commitment to Liverpool.
And it is even more stunning given how Klopp has rebuilt – or in his word “reloaded” – Liverpool so brilliantly this season that they are in the hunt for four trophies as Premier League leaders, in the EFL Cup Final against Chelsea, with a fourth-round FA Cup tie at home to Norwich City at what is sure to be an emotional Anfield on Sunday, as well as being Europa League favourites.
Klopp’s will be the hardest of acts to follow, not simply because of his bond with Liverpool’s fans but also the ability which makes him one of football’s greatest coaches, having brought the Champions League back to Liverpool in 2019 and their first title in 30 years 12 months later. In the meantime, however, the game is still coming to terms with the bombshell news that Klopp is on his way out of Liverpool.
Klopp timeline at Liverpool
8 October, 2015 – Klopp appointed Liverpool manager
18 May, 2016 – Liverpool lose 3-1 to Sevilla in Europa League final
1 January, 2018 – Virgil van Dijk joins from Southampton in £75m deal, a then world record fee for a defender
6 January, 2018 – Philippe Coutinho joins Barcelona in an initial £105m deal, rising to a potential £142m, which helps the club to pay for Van Dijk and eventually purchase players including Alisson and Fabinho
26 May, 2018 – Liverpool lose 3-1 to Real Madrid in Champions League final in Kyiv, Ukraine
7 May, 2019 – Liverpool reach second consecutive Champions League final by overturning 3-0 semi-final first-leg deficit against Barcelona with a 4-0 win at Anfield in second leg
1 June, 2019 – Liverpool beat Tottenham 2-0 in Champions League final in Madrid to win club’s sixth European Cup
14 August, 2019 – Liverpool defeat Chelsea 5-4 on penalties after 2-2 draw to win Uefa Super Cup
21 December, 2019 – Liverpool beat Flamengo 1-0 to win Club World Cup
25 June, 2020 – Liverpool win their 19th league title and first Premier League, finishing the season on a club record 99 points
27 February, 2022 – Liverpool beat Chelsea 11-10 on penalties in EFL Cup final after 0-0 draw
28 April, 2022 – Klopp extends Liverpool contract until 2026
14 May, 2022 – Liverpool beat Chelsea 6-5 on penalties in FA Cup final after 0-0 draw
28 May, 2022 – Liverpool lose 1-0 to Real Madrid in Champions League final in Paris
5 March, 2023 – Liverpool beat Manchester United 7-0 at Anfield in Premier League
26 January 2024 – Klopp announces he will step down at end of the 2023-24 season
‘I will never, ever manage a different club in England’
Klopp left former club Borussia Dortmund, who he led to two Bundesliga titles, in May 2015 to take a sabbatical before ending it when he succeeded Brendan Rodgers at Anfield in October that year.
Liverpool were 10th in the Premier League when he took over and they went on to finish eighth at the end of the 2015-2016 campaign, while they lost the Europa League final to Sevilla.
Klopp went on to become the only Liverpool manager to win the league title, European Cup/Champions League, FA Cup and EFL Cup with the Reds.
He guided Liverpool to their sixth European Cup in 2019 when they beat Tottenham in the Champions League final in Madrid.
They followed that up in 2019-20 with victory in the Uefa Super Cup and the Fifa Club World Cup and, most significantly, lifted the Premier League title. Liverpool won a domestic cup double in the 2021-22 season, and narrowly missed out on a quadruple as they were pipped by Manchester City on the final day of the Premier League season and lost the Champions League final to Real Madrid in Paris.
The Reds failed to win any major silverware last season but are in contention for four trophies this term. They beat Fulham on Wednesday to reach the Carabao Cup final.
“It didn’t start [then], but of course last season was kind of a super-difficult season and there were moments when at other clubs probably the decision would have been, ‘Come on, thank you very much for everything but probably we should split here, or end it here.’ That didn’t happen here, obviously,” added Klopp.
Klopp was appointed in October 2015 and his contract was due to run until 2026.
He won the Champions League in 2019 before leading Liverpool to their first league title in 30 years in 2019-20. “I told the club already in November,” said 56-year-old Klopp, who has announced his decision with his side top of the Premier League.
“I can understand that it’s a shock for a lot of people in this moment, when you hear it for the first time, but obviously I can explain it – or at least try to explain it.
“I love absolutely everything about this club, I love everything about the city, I love everything about our supporters, I love the team, I love the staff. I love everything.
But that I still take this decision shows you that I am convinced it is the one I have to take. “It is that I am, how can I say it, running out of energy. I have no problem now, obviously, I knew it already for longer that I will have to announce it at one point, but I am absolutely fine now. I know that I cannot do the job again and again and again and again.”
