Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp will follow through on his stated intention to take a good length of time away from football, according to a close friend – and will never manage any other Premier League side.
The departing Reds boss will take charge of his final game this Sunday as Liverpool close out their season with their Premier League final day clash with Wolverhampton Wanderers at an emotional Anfield.
Liverpool have nothing to play for and will finish the campaign in third place come what may having lost considerable ground in the title race with a stuttering run of form from April onwards, as well as being knocked out of both the FA Cup and Europa League in the quarter-finals by Manchester United and Atalanta respectively.
'Difficult' to see Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp taking jobs in England or Germany
Klopp had already announced back in January that he would be leaving Liverpool at the end of the season, with Feyenoord boss Arne Slot looking set to succeed him – though no formal announcement of that has yet been made.
That has prompted speculation about where Klopp’s next move will be and how soon he might take it, but Mainz director Christian Heidel believes Klopp is sincere in his assertion that he needs his first significant break since taking several months off between leaving Borussia Dortmund and arriving at Liverpool.
Heidel – who worked with Klopp in his first managerial job and has remained a close friend ever since – told Sky’s German arm (as reported by Bild): “To all the people who now believe that he will be back in two months: that’s not Jurgen Klopp.
“I would put my hand in the fire for that – and I know a little bit about what he’s up to. The people who say that he is coming back tomorrow…what kind of pressure was on a coach like Jurgen Klopp, with these clubs that he had?
“It’s completely understandable to me that he just wants to take care of himself and his family now.”
Heidel also hinted that Klopp’s sentimental attachment to Liverpool and Dortmund alike makes it difficult to imagine him rocking up at another big English side or at Dortmund’s arch-rivals Bayern Munich.
“It won’t be that easy,” he said. “I can’t imagine him ever coaching another club in England. That just doesn’t suit him. And I think that’s also very difficult in Germany.”
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Could Sunday also be goodbye to Mohamed Salah and Alisson? It will be if the Saudi Pro League gets its way. Liverpool could meanwhile join a three-way battle a Premier League rival and Celtic for a potential Alisson replacement, meanwhile.
Plus: reports suggest Liverpool are preparing to trigger £85million release clause for Premier League star.
