What next for Jurgen Klopp? Barcelona among five possible paths after leaving Liverpool

Ian Watson
Jurgen Klopp with Carlo Ancelotti, Julian Nagelsmann and Jamie Redknapp.
Replacing Carlo Ancelotti or Julian Nagelsmann next for Jurgen Klopp, or a TV gig?

With Jurgen Klopp planning life after Liverpool, we map out five different next steps for the German, including new management jobs and a different career path entirely…

 

Barcelona
Most the noise around Klopp’s future since his big announcement has centred on Barcelona. A day after Klopp stunned Liverpool fans by revealing his intention to depart in the summer, Xavi did the same, leaving Barca in need of a new coach.

It seems the Catalans would love Klopp to take over. The German is said to be Joan Laporta’s ‘dream candidate’ and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has offered his all-important endorsement.

One report suggests an approach to Klopp is imminent, but are Barca not p***ing in the wind somewhat?

Klopp was very clear over his intention to take at least year off, which makes the timing unworkable. Real Madid, though, might have a convenient vacancy.

Carlo Ancelotti signed a new deal until 2026 but the Italian is just as likely as not to reach the end of those terms, such is the expectancy at Real. It is entirely possible that the Spanish giants could look to appoint Klopp, in whom they have retained a long-term interest, when the German has replenished his fuel reserves, perhaps in 2025.

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Retirement
Might this be it for Klopp? It is possible that we’ve seen the last of him on a touchline.

When he spoke of his impending exit, Klopp alluded to a desire to seek a different path. “I need to find a different purpose as well, I need to have a look for it,” he said. “If you ask me, ‘Will you ever work as a manager again?’ I would say now no. But I don’t know obviously how that will feel because I never had the situation.

“What I know definitely – I will never, ever manage a different club in England than Liverpool, 100 per cent. That’s not possible… But all the rest, will I ever work again? Of course, I know myself, I cannot just sit around.

“I will find something else maybe to do. But I will not manage a club or a country at least for a year, that’s not possible, I cannot do that and I don’t want to. That’s all.”

By the time Klopp, 56, walks out of Anfield in May, he will have been managing for 23 years – two decades at the top level with only a brief break between Dortmund and Liverpool. Given the stresses involved, who could blame him for seeking a slower pace of life without the scrutiny and demands placed upon an elite manager in the modern game?

But the fire clearly still burns even if Klopp is running low on fuel. He’ll be back. Maybe after a stint on the box…

 

TV
There is little doubt that Klopp would be fantastic as a pundit, even if he’s had little time in the past for some of those who work in the media.

The things that make him a brilliant coach – charisma, knowledge, communication – would transfer seamlessly to the TV. And, hopefully, prompt some of the dross we’re currently offered by the networks to up their game.

Whether or not his sabbatical becomes a longer-term arrangement, it is highly unlikely that we won’t see Klopp across various platforms in the coming year. For sure, Jamie Carragher will drag him on Monday Night Football before Christmas, and you can bet Jake Humphrey’s calls are being screened by Klopp’s agent.

Germany
The DFB would love for Klopp to manage his country. They hoped he might be persuaded last September when Hansi Flick was axed but Klopp was committed to the Reds. “We’re building Liverpool 2.0 here, we want to attack again and not just look at how much longer can we go on. I have a loyalty to Liverpool,” he said. “I signed a contract here and, as far as I can remember, I wasn’t drugged or tied up and had to sign with my mouth. That was a free decision. And that’s why it doesn’t fit.”

Taking Klopp at his word, it won’t ‘fit’ after the European Championships either, when current coach Julian Nagelsmann’s contract is up. Nagelsmann is under pressure to deliver during the home-based Euros, especially in the wake of Germany’s recent misery at major tournaments. That much is evident in short-term deal he was offered to replace Flick.

That seemed to suit Nagelsmann, who reportedly sees his future in club football. In a perfect world, Klopp would slip into the national team role after the Euros while Nagelsmann seeks a top club job after re-establishing his credentials at the Euros. But Klopp’s desire for a ‘at least a year’ away scuppers that timetable.

Still, though, it is hard to imagine that Klopp would never manage his country. He has spoken before about what a ‘great honour’ it would be. But timing is everything.

Jurgen Klopp with England badge

England
Klopp would perhaps be as popular a choice to take over England as he would Germany. But, again, the timing probably does not work.

All the noises around Gareth Southgate suggest he will step down as England boss after the European Championships. That would leave the FA looking for a new coach just as Klopp is putting his feet up.

Would Klopp fancy the England gig? It would hardly tarnish his reputation on Merseyside, but the German can’t have missed the general Scouse-not-English sentiment around his home city for the last eight years.

If Klopp is to take a national team job, it will surely be his own nation’s.

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