JURGEN TARGETS FOUR MORE YEARS OF GLORY
THE clues were subtle, but had those who know him well enough looked closely, there were hints Jurgen Klopp’s mindset was changing.
Visibly more relaxed in recent weeks, he seems completely in control and at ease now with his role as the orchestrator of the greatest
attempt so far on the impossible football dream of the Quadruple.
He had appeared drained, at times, in the early months of 2022, leading many to conclude he would go through with his frequently-stated plan to leave in 2024, at the end of his contract. Yet now the love is back, even for his side’s insane schedule.
Clearly Klopp (after joining Liverpool in October 2015, right) loves working with a remarkable group of players, a tight-knit, talented and loyal staff, with owners who respect and admire him, and a fanbase who worship him. Which is why it was Klopp who suddenly approached Mike Gordon, the man who runs Liverpool, to initiate a new agreement.
The owners are desperate for him to stay. He is the perfect 21st-century manager.
He possesses all the traditional abilities: a supreme motivator with outstanding player-management skills, an intelligent, adaptive coach, with a modern understanding of tactics and medicine. And he possesses what most managers don’t in this new age of football – the ability to understand complex analysis, digest it into his own tactical and technical thinking, but crucially, to then convey that information in a way his players understand.
For Klopp, this has never been about money. It is about the project. He has what he always wanted as a manager at Anfield, and decided that he couldn’t turn his back on it yet.
He may not have won as much as Shankly, Paisley and Dalglish – yet – but he is already alongside them. There is also no doubt this squad is the best in Liverpool history, and that is another reason Klopp has chosen to stay.
Yet he is already building the next great team. He has signed Jota, Konate and Diaz to smoothly transition in alongside his current stars, and his exciting crop of home-grown or home-developed talent.
He wants to finish that job. He wants to win now and build for the future, so that even when he leaves, the club is left in rude health for his successor.
But most of all, he wants to win. This season has refreshed his burning appetite. No team has still been chasing the Quadruple at this stage of the season. And he has achieved that even with one of the greatest teams of all time, in Manchester City, as a rival.
Why end that prematurely? In the end, he realised he couldn’t. Which offers some clues about Liverpool over the next four years.
Even if their glorious Quadruple bid fails, Klopp believes he has the appetite to win more trophies at Anfield. That could see Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and even Roberto Firmino all sign new contracts in the summer.
Perhaps Naby Keita and James Milner, too, because the manager believes he has the perfect balance.
With the athleticism of his front three, Klopp has said he can see all of them playing until their mid-30s and beyond, and that is surely a factor in his decision, especially with Jota and Diaz there to supplement and challenge them.
He will also get the chance to sign young players to enhance his squad, and develop it for the future, with the likes of Jude Bellingham and Aurelien Tchouameni on the radar.
Klopp is a socialist in the Shankly sense. He believes in people, in their goodness, and in making them happy, as Liverpool’s greatest manager did.
He has the chance to do that without selling his soul, and that is something he realises he cannot turn his back on.