When Jurgen Klopp, who introduced he is leaving Liverpool on the finish of the season, arrived on Merseyside 9 years in the past – the panorama of the Premier League was utterly totally different.
Liverpool had been removed from the powerhouse they’re in the present day, and Manchester City had been with out one Pep Guardiola. And their standing mirrored their first signing beneath Klopp; Marko Grujic.
The teen was one for the long run when he put pen-to-paper, earmarked for a task in Klopp’s future sides. However it by no means fairly panned out for the Serbian on these shores, and he is now in Portugal battling for the title on the peninsula.
READ MORE: Jurgen Klopp was wished by Man Utd in ‘grownup Disneyland’ pitch to departing Liverpool boss
READ MORE: Jurgen Klopp stored Liverpool exit resolution quiet for 2 months after telling membership
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Klopp performed a giant position in attractive Grujic to Anfield, with the midfielder additionally attracting consideration from the likes of Real Madrid. Speaking in regards to the transfer, Grujic mentioned: He did a lot of the speaking and informed me in regards to the plans that he had for me.
“His vision is that I should be something between a No. 6 and a No. 10. What they call a box-to-box midfielder. My only request was that I didn’t want to be loaned out, I just want to play for Liverpool.
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(Image: Getty Images)
“He was very open, told me about how he sees my development. When a coach like that calls you on the phone personally, that’s the greatest privilege. That call really cemented my desire to join Liverpool.
“He is legendary as somebody who likes to work with younger gamers. He has made Subotic, Lewandowski, Kagawa.”
Grujic spent his formative years at Liverpool in the shadows, before a chance to show off his skills on loan at Cardiff City. However, it never helped to elevate his status on Merseyside, and by the time 2020 rolled around – he had just eight Premier League appearances to his name.
(Image: Liverpool FC by way of Getty Images)
Grujic was shipped out on mortgage to Porto the identical summer time, and he made his transfer everlasting six months later. The Serbian has been a constant performer for the Portuguese giants, and he was sensationally linked to Manchester United in the summertime.
Speaking about his time at Liverpool, Grujic classed it as successful: “I would say my career at Liverpool was successful,” the midfielder informed The Athletic in 2021.
“OK, not in terms of games played or what I achieved for the club, but I certainly left Liverpool as a much better player than when I first arrived.”
He’s now concerned in a Portuguese title battle with Porto, who’re 5 factors adrift of present leaders Sporting Lisbon within the race for the crown.