Liverpool are so confident of landing Jurgen Klopp that they have begun planning his introductory press conference.
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Jurgen Klopp is expected to be unveiled as Liverpool’s new manager on Friday.
Talks have been ongoing with the 48-year-old and his advisers since Sunday and Liverpool are so confident of landing the charismatic German that they have begun planning his introductory press conference.
No contracts have been signed but it is expected that Klopp will be offered the minimum of a three-year deal by Fenway Sports Group, as was the case when they appointed previous managers Kenny Dalglish and Brendan Rodgers.
Klopp has long been the man FSG wanted to replace Rodgers and they have moved quickly to ensure they do not miss the opportunity to secure one of the most highly regarded managers in the European game.
He is expected to bring his long-term assistants Zeljko Buvac and Peter Krawietz with him but no decision has been made about the futures of Sean O’Driscoll, Gary McAllister and Pepijn Lijnders, who were all appointed by Rodgers
in the summer. Club legend Robbie Fowler, however, has stated his ambition to work with Klopp. He is currently an ambassador but has completed all his coaching badges and he said: ‘I would be lying if I said I wasn’t interested — when the new manager comes in I’d love to be on the backroom staff.’
There is a buzz on Merseyside about the prospect of Klopp revitalising Liverpool’s fortunes after the club’s results under Rodgers — who is in the process of settling his severance pay via the League Managers’ Association — dipped alarmingly over the last six months.
FSG have spoken with Klopp during that period. He wanted to take a sabbatical after seven years at Borussia Dortmund but given Rodgers had to face a review after failing to deliver any of the required targets, it was prudent for Liverpool to gauge Klopp’s intentions.
Though they sounded out Carlo Ancelotti and held meetings with the Italian, Klopp was the No 1 target all along and as results failed to pick up — with the 3-0 defeat at home to West Ham on August 29 being the beginning of the end — he was waiting for FSG’s signal.
The project of restoring Liverpool to the peak of the English game and getting them competing in Europe is one he relishes. Liverpool have no intention of rejigging their much-discussed transfer committee but Klopp, as was the case with Rodgers, will have the final say on all potential signings and the format at Anfield is not too dissimilar to the one under which he worked in Dortmund.
Support for Klopp’s arrival has been unanimous and Dietmar Hamann, the former Germany international who won the Champions League during his six years as a Liverpool player, is in no doubt that FSG have chosen wisely.
‘He is the ideal candidate for the job — he is the one I would pick,’ said Hamann, who insists he has had no role in bringing the two parties together. ‘The expectations and the mood couldn’t be any further down than they are at the moment at Anfield so it is a great time to come.
‘I don’t think with his appointment Liverpool will become title contenders overnight but you need to have a lift from somewhere and I think he can do this. Liverpool are a working-class club, a working-class town, and you need somebody the fans take to.
‘It is very important at a club like Liverpool that the fans take to the manager. For a lot of fans, Klopp would be the first choice and it looks like he is coming. And I think he can create that spark, the emotion, and give people hope again, which has been lost in the last 12 months.
‘He has a lot of love and passion for the game and this is why he fits the bill perfectly and why he will be a success.’
More praise for Klopp’s abilities and managerial style came from Hans-Joachim Watzke, his former chief executive at Dortmund. He pointed out that the former Mainz manager, who oversaw a 5-0 pre-season friendly win over Liverpool in 2006, is a master at improving players.
‘He has a good style of playing football and I don’t know if he will go to Liverpool or to another club, but the club who get him get a very good manager,’ said Watzke. ‘He can do every job, he can make every club better and Liverpool are very similar to Borussia Dortmund.
‘They have the same structure and the same fans. They are a marvellous club. Every player he has in his hands, he makes them better — you can be sure. It is wonderful to work with him because he has a big understanding of the problems of the club.’
There was a lull around Melwood, Liverpool’s training ground, yesterday, with so many of the squad away on international duty. But McAllister and Linders took charge of a small session in the morning with players such as Alberto Moreno, Lucas Leiva and Joao Teixeira.
Christian Benteke and Kolo Toure, meanwhile, were doing fitness work as they recover from injuries.
Benteke, a player whom Klopp considered signing for Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 2013 when they were replacing Robert Lewandowski, has been out of action since pulling his hamstring in the 1-1 draw with Norwich on September 20 but he has been given the all-clear to do light jogging.
Klopp’s backroom staff:
ZELJKO BUVAC
The 54-year-old Bosnian has been assistant to Klopp since his first managerial position at Mainz in 2001, right through to his departure from Borussia Dortmund in the summer.
The pair were also team-mates at Mainz, and Buvac was previously described as Klopp’s ‘twin’.
PETER KRAWIETZ
Another of Klopp’s coaching staff at Mainz, Krawietz spends much of his time dissecting video footage for his manager as well as coaching.
Unlike Klopp and Buvac, the German never played football professionally — describing himself as an ‘enthusiastic amateur’.
Seven things to know about Jurgen Klopp:
1 Born in Stuttgart on June 16, 1967, his middle name is Norbert.
2 Klopp was a one-club man throughout his professional playing career, making more than 300 appearances for Mainz, having started out as a forward before switching to defence.
3 He then took up the managerial reins at Mainz, steering them into the Bundesliga for the first time in their history during his seven years in charge.
4 Seven was also the number of years he managed Dortmund, winning six trophies — two Bundesliga titles, the German cup, and three German Supercups before leaving at the end of last season.
5 Klopp is a committed Christian and often discusses his faith in public.
6He has appeared in several advertising campaigns from banks to clothing companies. Car brand Opel even credited Klopp with turning round its fortunes in the country, saying his role as ambassador helped boost sales of its Insignia model by 35 per cent in 2014.
7German comedian Matze Knop has released two songs in tribute to the coach called ‘I Wanna Be Like Jurgen Klopp’ and ‘Kloppo You Rockstar’. – Daily Mail
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