Jurgen Klopp has opened up on his Liverpool exit for the very first time after taking part in a press conference on Tuesday.
After agreeing to take the role of Global Head of Soccer at Red Bull back in October, Klopp has now officially started and it promises to be a busy opening couple of months for the German.
As part of his first duties in the role, Klopp sat down for his first press conference on Tuesday afternoon – where he opened up on Liverpool exit last year.
‘When you are in the job for 25 years, it’s super intense. The only thing is that I am a very curious person and I couldn’t feed that anymore,’ he said at a press conference on Tuesday.
‘It was just game after game after game after game. You keep a specific level and I wasn’t extremely happy with that to be honest. I always want to try to learn new stuff and I felt when I heard about the role that’s what I would do.
‘I no longer have to improve the game in individual places, but I want to make football better all over the world. No longer prepare a new game every week, but work on the bigger picture.’
Jurgen Klopp opened up on his Liverpool exit for the first time at a Red Bull press conference
He sat down to address the media for the first time since taking on the new role
It is his first job since he left Liverpool at the end of last season following nine years at Anfield
Since his departure from Anfield, Liverpool have found success under his replacement Arne Slot – however there are a number of concerns the Dutchman is dealing with.
Notably, Liverpool have three key players – Mohamed Salah, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk – all on expiring deals.
Though Reds fans would have hoped the club could tie them down to a contract extension, that looks increasingly unlikely as the days go by.
Egyptian winger Salah even came forward recently and insisted that it would be his final season at the club, as negotiations over a new deal failed to progress.
Speaking on Salah’s potential exit, Klopp said: ‘I hope he stays. He is Liverpool’s best striker in modern times – and they had many great ones. A fantastic player, a fantastic professional. Absolutely outstanding. The best ambassador Egypt could have.’
Klopp officially started work as Red Bull’s Head of Global Soccer in October.
The German was in the crowd on Saturday to watch second-tier French side Paris FC as part of his new role with Red Bull.
Among his tasks is turning Paris FC into a leading club in France under the ownership of France’s richest family, the Arnaults of luxury empire LVMH.
Klopp insisted that he hopes Liverpool star Mohamed Salah ends up staying at the club
The Egyptian is free to negotiate with any other club – with his current deal ending in summer
The family’s takeover of the second-tier club includes bringing the energy drinks giant on board as a minority stakeholder, which is where Klopp fits in to provide his strategic vision.
‘I see my role primarily as a mentor for the coaches and management of the Red Bull clubs,’ Klopp said back in October. ‘But ultimately I am one part of an organization that is unique, innovative and forward looking.’
More to follow…