Jurgen Klopp says Liverpool squad rebuild was motivation behind contract extension - 'I knew it's necessary'
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Published 25/01/2023 at 12:42 GMT
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp says he knew a squad rebuild was required when he signed a contract extension last year, and overseeing the transition period was one of the 'main reasons' he signed the deal. Liverpool are languishing in mid-table in the Premier League after a disappointing campaign. But Klopp is looking long-term despite pointing out that he isn't a miracle worker.
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Overseeing a Liverpool squad rebuild was "one of the main reasons" Jurgen Klopp agreed to extend his contract at Anfield, the German manager has revealed.
It has been a difficult campaign so far for the Reds, who are ninth in the Premier League table at the midway stage of the 2022-23 season.
Klopp has enjoyed immense success since taking the Liverpool job in 2015, leading them to Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup and Champions League titles.
“I’m not sure [the squad transition] is the biggest challenge, but it’s a challenge,” Klopp said on Michael Calvin’s Football People podcast.
“It was one of the main reasons why I signed a new contract, because I knew it’s necessary. It will not go overnight.
“And imagine the situation now with another coach in the chair – I would be somewhere on holiday, and everybody would shout my name: ‘With him it would not have happened!’
Some of the key components of Klopp's triumphs at Liverpool, such as Sadio Mane, have since departed, while the likes of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, Jordan Henderson and Virgil van Dijk are all the wrong side of 30 now.
Liverpool have forked out big sums to bring in young talent like Darwin Nunez, Fabio Carvalho and Cody Gakpo this season in a bid to freshen up the squad.
Klopp says he wanted to ensure he was the man in charge of the squad’s transition period when he signed a two-year contract extension last year to keep him at Anfield until 2026.
“I’m obviously not a miracle worker. That’s why it’s good how it is, because all the problems you have in a transition time period – we have an awful lot of injuries, and that makes life really complicated – I have no problem with that because I see [the situation].
“I know the majority of the outside world is just interested in the short-term, but we have to be long-term focused as well, and that’s what we are.”
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Liverpool are 10 points outside the top four and 21 points adrift of league leaders Arsenal.
Klopp’s side face Brighton in the FA Cup on Sunday, and next month they will face European champions Real Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 clash.
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