northOh, the “by far the most special trophy” of the era. Jurgen Klopp They no longer want to let the successful German coach leave for Liverpool FC. “It may be a hopeless task, but how can they let him ride off into the sunset now?” wrote the Liverpool Echo. The newspaper on Monday called on the club's owners to pick up the phone and change the team manager's decision to leave the club in the summer after almost nine years.
Klopp led the Reds to a Champions League triumph in 2019 and a year later gave the club its first English championship in 30 years. But Sunday's 1-0 draw in the relatively insignificant League Cup final against Chelsea FC was probably his personal masterpiece. “It is an evening I will never forget. If no one else sees it that way, no problem. For me it is a very nice memory forever,” said the 56-year-old at London's Wembley Stadium.
“My God, what's going on here?”
Eleven stars, including scorers Mohamed Salah, goalkeeper Alisson Becker and national player Trent Alexander-Arnold were left out. The number twelve was added with the early injury of former Bayern professional Ryan Gravenberch. Klopp had to rely on his young talent from the academy. The little-known Conor Bradley (20), Bobby Clark (19), James McConnell (19), Jayden Danns (18) and Jarell Quansah (21) were used throughout the 120 minutes.
“Klopp's sons against blue, million-dollar bottle jobs,” mocked TV pundit Gary Neville. In England, players who fail under great pressure are often called bottle jobs. The former Bayern coach was close to this expression in Germany Giovanni Trapattoniwhen he called players “weak as an empty bottle” in his legendary angry speech.
“Sometimes they ask me if I'm proud of this or that, and that's really difficult. “I wish I could feel pride more often, but I just don't,” an emotional Klopp said: “But tonight I have the overwhelming feeling: 'My God, what is happening here?' “I was proud of everyone who was involved in everything here.”
Rarely had the former Dortmund coach been so excited. “Can you create stories in football that no one forgets? It's very difficult because everything has happened before. But tonight, a story where academy players play against a top team and still win is something I have never heard of.”
But the decisive goal was scored by one of the few stars left on the team. Dutchman Virgil van Dijk scored with a header in the 118th minute of an exciting and fast-paced final. This makes the first title of Klopp's farewell tour a perfect one, with three more to come.
Leads the English football championship Liverpool just ahead of Manchester City and Arsenal FC, the club can also win the more valuable FA Cup and Europa League. In the summer, the former Bundesliga coach of Dortmund and Mainz will leave his club after nine seasons. Liverpool won the League Cup during his tenure in 2022, also in the final against Chelsea.
“I don't care about my legacy at all. “I'm not here to do anything,” Klopp said of his remaining tasks: “As a coach of a football club, you are there to do your job.” That's why it's not a problem if the coach leaves. “If these people “If our fans left, it would be a problem. But as long as they are what they are, Liverpool Football Club will be fine, and that is the most important thing,” Klopp emphasized.