The 26th of January, 2024 was a sad and emotional day for Liverpool fans, as beloved manager Jürgen Klopp announced he would be leaving the club at the end of the season. He said “I love absolutely everything about this club, I love everything about the city, I love everything about our supporters, I love the team, I love the staff. I love everything. But that I still take this decision shows you that I am convinced it is the one I have to take.”
His last game in charge brought a win at Anfield, allowing him to draw the curtain on his Liverpool career in a fitting style. The Reds beat Wolves 2-0 on the 19th of May and that was that – the end of an era. Already now Liverpool have acted to replace Klopp, bringing in Arne Slot from Feyenoord. It wasn’t long before Dominik Szoboszlai scored the first goal of the post-Klopp era, and ushered in the first win under the new manager.
But whilst many Liverpool fans will adopt an attitude of “The King is dead, long live the King”, many more will still follow the career and life of their iconic, charismatic former boss. He left Liverpool saying that he needed to recharge and that he was “running out of energy”.
He didn’t really say what his plans for the future would be, beyond stating that “What I know definitely – I will never, ever manage a different club in England than Liverpool, 100%. That’s not possible.” He said that at that particular moment in time he would answer “no” if asked would he ever work as a manager again but very much left the door open by adding that “But I don’t know obviously how that will feel because I never had the situation”.
Klopp and England – The Perfect Match?
Gareth Southgate vacated his role as England manager shortly after the Three Lions came up just short at Euro 2024 in Germany. Southgate did a brilliant job and despite his critics, he will be hard to replace. England made the semi final and then quarter final of the World Cup, and two Euros finals. Had Pep Guardiola been at the helm, or Carlo Ancelotti, or even Klopp, can we be absolutely sure they would have achieved more than that in four major tournaments?
The answer is unequivocally no, and those that doubt that should consider how long it took Pep to win his third Champions League title despite having the vast resources of Bayern Munich and Man City at his disposal. Win number two came in 2011, with number three well over a decade later, in 2023.
There has been much debate about whether Southgate should be replaced by an English coach, or whether the Three Lions should simply pick the best man for the job. If they go down the latter route, then Klopp would have to be high on the wish-list of many, not least because so many other top bosses are already in jobs.
Klopp has many similarities with Southgate in that they are both men of principle, both hugely popular with their players, and both turned around the fortunes of their last side. However, they also have obvious differences, with Klopp boasting far more top-level club experience, and certain to play a more front-foot style of football. Many England fans salivate at the thought of Klopp managing to get the best out of players such as Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden, Bukayo Saka, Kobbie Mainoo and all the rest. But is there any realistic prospect of that happening?
Klopp Dismisses Links
Whenever a big manager’s job becomes available the rumour mill goes three or four gears past overdrive. Bookmakers take bets on such things and you will see all sorts of names thrown up as options. Odds in these markets change very quickly, with a few bets or a false rumour on social media seeing odds tumble as people believe a deal is imminent.
When it comes to who would replace Southgate, Eddie Howe, Graham Potter and Lee Carsley, the current Under 21 boss, were the obvious potential candidates, and all three have been heavily linked with the position. Foreign possibilities included Guardiola, Klopp, Thomas Tuchel and many others.
“The biggest loss of face in the history of football”
However, on the 31st of July, Klopp very much dismissed suggestions that he could, or would, be the man to take over. He said that if did accept the job (which, of course, has not been offered to him, as far as we know), it would be “the biggest loss of face in the history of football”.
Speaking at a coaching conference, he said that he had no managerial jobs in mind, be that with a club, country, or even something in an advisory capacity. He said that to change his mind so soon after stating he needed time away from football and “make an exception” for England was just not going to happen.
Odds on Klopp
Despite this, Klopp remains relatively high in the pecking order according to the bookies pricing up the market on next England manager. This is a volatile area of betting, as explained, but even despite more or less entirely ruling himself out of the running, at the time of writing the former Reds icon remains the sixth favourite. He is available at odds of 20/1, though is in single-digit prices with some firms. Carsley is the current favourite, but he, Potter and Howe are all priced between 5/2 and 9/2, so there really isn’t much in it.
Klopp has stated that he believes he is too young to retire completely but that he needs more rest and time away from the game. We cannot see him becoming the England manager, certainly not the next one. However, we wouldn’t be too surprised to see him back in the game in 2025, or perhaps even a little sooner. He said, “I still want to work in football and help people with my experience and contacts. Let’s see what else there is for me.”
So, Reds, watch this space, but England fans need not hold their breath!