Dad made me a winner... I wish he’dseen me do this
LIVERPOOL BOSS OPENS HIS HEART
Four months before he landed his first coaching job at Mainz in 2001, his father Norbert died and Klopp will always regret that he did not live to see him succeed as a boss.
His middle name is Norbert, after his dad, and he always felt he was living his father’s dream.
His grandad decided football was not an appropriate career for Klopp’s dad when Kaiserslautern offered the promising Norbert a professional contract at 18.
Norbert put all his energies into his only son’s career, coaching him as he grew up in the Black Forest village of Glatten.
Klopp struggled with his brand of tough love and felt he was overcritical, especially compared to the care and affection he received from his mum Elisabeth.
“My mum was just a typical Black Forest mum, caring, loving, full of trust and faith,” said the Liverpool manager.
“Whatever happened out there, you would come home and she loved you anyway.
“Unfortunately when I describe my dad and I read it from time to time, it’s not fair how it sounds.
This relationship was much more based on respect and clear messages.
“He was an unbelievable football player. Kaiserslautern were a big, big club in Germany and they offered him a contract.
“But my grandad said, ‘ You don’t go for this football, you learn something serious’ and he didn’t allow him to join them.
“He wanted me to fulfil his dreams. I loved all the things he wanted me to do.
“But then it’s one thing that you love doing it and another thing that your dad, your coach, is unhappy with the steps you take.
“He was a little bit more about giving criticism than praise for what you did. But that was his generation.
“When I told my dad I wanted to do sports science, he was completely on fire.
“He said, ‘ Yes, do that!’ He had no idea what I could do with it but I was the first kid of the family who studied, so he was, ‘ Yeah, do that.’
“I know exactly what he wanted me to do: be really successful in sports.
“The real shame of this story is he wasn’t here any more when I became a manager.”
Klopp, 53, talks movingly about his dad in the new feature- length documentary ‘ The End of the Storm’ about Liverpool’s title success last season.
He is reminded of him every time he looks in the mirror and he is surprised by how much he now resembles him.
Klopp is especially sad Norbert is not around because he believes they would be close now.
But he feels he is looking down on him, pestering his friends in heaven to watch every time Liverpool play.
Klopp added: “My father, he died unfortunately nearly 20 years ago. Now when I look in a mirror, I am shocked because I look exactly like my father.
“I would today be able to have a brilliant relationship with him because I’m now old enough and strong enough to say what I want to say in the right tonality.
“So now we could have completely cool conversations about all the things that happened, but unfortunately u we cannot do that.
“But I’m a Christian, I believe in God living in heaven, and that’s he’s just there, annoying other people, telling them they have to watch this game with him. I’m 100 per cent sure about that.
“If he had d seen how my life turned t out ut after I started d as a manager, r,
I think he e would have e been pretty y happy.” h