ROBBIE FOWLER
Our Anfield legend says what we’re all thinking
JURGEN KLOPP will be remembered as Liverpool’s greatest-ever manager
And I am calling on the club to rename the most famous stand in football ‘The Klopp’ for his final game at Anfield.
That’s quite some statement for me to make when you think about the role that legends Bill Shankly, Bob Paisley and Sir Kenny Dalglish have played in making Liverpool history over the last 65 years.
Shanks turned Anfield into the “bastion of invincibility” he envisaged after taking over a club languishing in the Second Division.
Paisley built six
Double in his first season as player-manager and later sacrificed so much of himself by guiding LFC through the tragedy of Hillsborough with incredible dignity.
Ranking these great men often comes down to a generational opinion.
There is a powerful argument that Klopp is No.1.
He has won every trophy possible in the eight years since he arrived at a club that had been treading water for so long.
But not only has he brought success to Merseyside, he has also restored a Scouse sense of pride and passion. The two new stands that tower over Anfield, and the state-of-theart training ground at Kirkby, financed by the fruits of his labour, are monuments to him. But I hope Liverpool honour Jurgen properly before he departs at the end of the season – and rebranding The Kop in his honour for his final home game would be perfect.
I am sure there will be a more permanent reminder of him commissioned at some stage.
I’ve always questioned the principle of building memorials to pay tribute to people after they have passed away.
Liverpool fans will want to show Jurgen the love while he can appreciate it himself. Ironically, I was in Manchester when it was announced that he is leaving Liverpool at the end of the season.
I checked the date to make sure it wasn’t the work of some mischievous Mancunian on a wind-up!
It’s no exaggeration to say that Liverpool’s fans are in a state of mourning. I have to be careful here. Shanks once talked of football being more serious than life and death – and then Hillsborough showed that even the great man himself wasn’t always right.
But it really did feel like someone had passed away on Friday. Jurgen is one of our own, a Scouser with a German accent – and he is leaving us.
I am not unduly worried that Liverpool’s players will lose focus during his farewell tour.
I think it can galvanise them even more and if he can harness the passion generated by the supporters, then Liverpool could become an unstoppable driving force.
The Reds can still win a quadruple – and what a fitting end it would be if Jurgen’s final act at Anfield was to lift the Premier League trophy in front of a full house.
When Jordan Henderson accepted Liverpool’s first title in 30 years in 2020, it was inside an empty stadium due to lockdown.
As soon as the announcement was made on Friday, the conspiracy theories started. I was guilty myself. Had Jurgen fallen out with the owners? Was he disillusioned with a lack of transfer funds? The usual stuff.
Later, I listened along with millions as Klopp explained to his public that he knew his energy levels were running dry and it would be time to go at the end of the season.
I have spent many hours in Jurgen’s company and one of his greatest qualities is his honesty. It was clear he spoke from the heart and that his reasons were genuine. Liverpool prides itself on being a family club – and Klopp has been the perfect fit because he shares values that have formed a bedrock at Anfield.
He might love football, might love Liverpool. But Jurgen has always made it clear that family come first.
Let’s not forget the sacrifice he made in 2021 when his mother Elisabeth passed away and Jurgen was unable to travel back to Germany to attend her funeral because the world was in lockdown.
A few months ago, he became a grandfather for the first time during what he described as a “perfect summer.” Perhaps he wants to make the most of these magical formative first years.
The Premier League will be a poorer place when Jurgen goes in May, but my message to him is: You’ll Never Walk Alone. ‘Jurgen is one of our own, a Scouser with a German accent’