Football fans were taken aback when Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp announced that he would be leaving the club at the end of the season.
Since taking over in October 2015, the German manager has nearly won every major trophy during the previous eight years. Despite being a well-liked member of the team, Klopp has stated he won’t be involved in the process to select the next Liverpool manager.
Klopp had a regularly scheduled press conference after making his declaration on Friday. The conference was mainly centered around the manager’s choice and future plans.
In the press conference, Klopp was asked if he would be involved in choosing the team’s future manager.
“No, why should I?” replied Klopp.
“The last thing they need is advice from the old man walking out who tells them: ‘By the way, make sure you bring him in.’ I will definitely not do that.”
“You know for most of the things I have an opinion, and you will not believe that for most I still didn’t say everything and I have no problem with that. I wish for the future of this club the very, very, very best and for now I am still here and can help them to achieve the best possible.”
Bayer Leverkusen‘s Xabi Alonso was the first candidate to be linked with the Liverpool job. It is not a surprise as the Spanish midfielder spent five seasons at Anfield and he is currently managing Bayer Leverkusen, who lead the Bundesliga standings and aim to defeat Bayern Munich to the league title.
But the former Liverpool player won’t be the only manager the Premier League team are looking at. Ange Postecoglou, Julian Nagelsmann and Roberto De Zerbi have all been mentioned as potential summer transfer candidates for the Merseyside club.
But in the next several weeks, Thomas Frank, the manager of Brentford, may very well emerge as a top contender.
The Athletic claims that Frank has admirers at Liverpool. After joining the Bees in 2018, the Danish manager led the team to the Premier League in 2021.
Not only has Frank assisted in making Brentford a reasonably strong side, but he also shares some of Klopp’s coaching methods. Like the Reds, Brentford enjoys employing what seems like limitless energy to press opposition attacks high on the pitch.
But it looks like Liverpool will take their time choosing Klopp’s replacement. The team intends to select a new sporting director before making any further decisions. Current sporting director Jorg Schmadtke will leave Liverpool at the end of the current transfer window.
