German footballer Jurgen Klopp was destined to become famous as a manager. The player jokingly noted that he had the legs of the fourth division and the head of the first. The athlete did not achieve significant achievements on the field. But Jurgen’s effective tactics, based on counterattacks and moderate pressure, helped the English club Liverpool achieve new heights. In addition, journalists and players noted the charisma of Klopp, who is an excellent motivator.

Jurgen Klopp: All You Need To Know

Jurgen Klopp is the family’s only son

Jurgen Klopp was born on June 16, 1967 in Stuttgart (Germany). Norbert Klopp’s family already had two daughters growing up, but the breadwinner wanted a son. When the heir was born, the father’s joy knew no bounds.

Jurgen Klopp was a die-hard football fan from childhood

Klopp spent the lion’s share of his childhood in the Glatten community. But at the same time he remained a fan of his hometown club. The boy called the legendary central defender Karl-Heinz Forster the best player of Stuttgart. As Klopp admitted, a person’s attitude to business is important to him.

Jurgen can be called a hereditary footballer: in his youth, his father was considered a promising goalkeeper. Norbert even had a tryout at Kaiserslautern. He tried living his dreams vicariously through Jurgen Klopp.

Jurgen Klopp’s father trained him hard

Jurgen went skiing in the winter and played tennis with his father in the summer. The remaining time was devoted to football. The guy was not given any concessions. On the field and court, the parent turned out to be faster and more agile than his son. Such an attitude strengthened character and gave an additional impetus to development.

In an interview, Klopp admitted that not everything was smooth in his life: his father was merciless towards his son. The coach said that while skiing with his dad, he saw only a red dot in front. Norbert did not care that his son was considered a newcomer: the head of the family wanted the heir to grow up strong.

Jurgen Klopp struggled off the football field

A tall young man (193 cm), Jurgen Klopp demonstrated good athletic results, but he needed to improve at other disciplines. Jurgen thought about medicine but realized that he would not advance in this field. During the presentation of the certificate of secondary education, one of the teachers wished the graduate success in football, noting that otherwise, the circumstances would not be very good for Klopp.

Jurgen Klopp started with amateur football

At first, Jurgen played at the amateur level. In the late 1980s he received a diploma from the J.W. Goethe University in Frankfurt. The topic of Jurgen’s thesis was walking. At the same time, he played for the non-professional Eintracht team.

Jurgen Klopp’s first big contract was with Mainz 05

The lower divisions did not provide enough money for Klopp, so he was forced to earn extra money. To fend for himself, the young man worked in a rental store and unloaded trucks. At the age of 33, when Jurgen signed a contract with Mainz 05, his career took off.

At that time, the provincial team had never reached the elite division. The main goal at that time was to maintain a place in the second Bundesliga so that the players would receive salaries. Jurgen came to this club as a striker, but in 1995 he finally established himself as a defender. The athlete became famous for his aggressive, but controlled technique.

By the 2000s, Klopp was considered Mainz 05’s leading player, standing out from the rest. Klopp left the field as the team’s record scorer, having scored 56 goals into the opponents’ goal. The career of a mentor also started at the same club. He also received his license as a professional trainer while studying with Erich Ruthemöller. For classes, Klopp traveled to Cologne every week.

Jurgen Klopp played for many small clubs

It is worth noting that in general, Jurgen turned out to be a mediocre footballer; he was never called up to the German national team. When fans want to find out where their beloved mentor played, they discover that, in addition to Mainz 05 and Eintracht, he played for Pforzheim and the lesser-known Ergenzingen, Viktoria Sinlingen and Rot-Weiss.

Jurgen Klopp started coaching Mainz 05 in 2001

Journalists and team members did not immediately see Jurgen as a coach. Some even thought it was a hoax during a press conference in early 2001. But no one at the club objected to Klopp’s appointment, although the transition from one role to another was abrupt.

Nevertheless, the first training session with Klopp surprised Mainz 05 sporting director Christian Heidel. According to the manager, Jurgen was ready to “put on the boots himself and take to the field.” The subsequent match, in which the team beat Duisburg, also inspired the players and fans.

The low budget and the quality of the conditions that the players had to train did not prevent Klopp from leading his players to success in the initial years. And although the bar was low, observers noted positive changes. However, the performance gradually worsened, and at the end of the 2007/2008 season, Jurgen decided to leave.

Jurgen Klopp and the transformation of Borussia Dortmund

The next club in Klopp’s managerial career was Borussia Dortmund, where the man found himself at the right time. Fans remembered that not long ago, the team was on the verge of bankruptcy. They decided to gather a new team around young and talented people. It was at this time that Jurgen left Mainz 05 and was considered a rising star.

When Klopp took over as Borussia coach, the club was in 13th position in the Bundesliga standings. The following year, Dortmund was already in 6th place, and in the 2010/2011 and 2011/2012 seasons, the team became German champions.

At the beginning of the 2013/2014 season, Jurgen extended his contract with Borussia until the summer of 2018. However, as results deteriorated, management announced in April 2015 that Klopp was leaving the club.

Jurgen Klopp ushered in an era of success at Anfield as well

Liverpool’s 2018/2019 season began with the best start in its history, when the team won 6 matches in a row in the Premier League. True, the club had no luck in English tournaments. But who cared when Klopp managed to lead the team to victory in the Champions League? Also in 2019, Jurgen pleased Rostov fans by attending a training session of the Russian FC at a training camp in Spain.

Subsequently, Liverpool under the leadership of Klopp continued to show good results. And in February 2020, after a triumph over West Ham United, the club’s players achieved their 18th win in a row, equaling the previous major league record holders, including Arsenal and Manchester City.

In June 2020, Liverpool won the English Premier League title 7 matches before the end of the tournament. Such achievements did not go unnoticed. At the end of the year, Klopp first received the title of best men’s coach according to FIFA, and then Klopp was awarded the same status by representatives of the BBC.

Klopp continued his career at Liverpool and did it successfully, despite the misfires that happened at times. But there are more positive aspects in Klopp’s work, which is regularly confirmed by the status of the best coach of the month and other accolades. The mentor’s demand is indirectly confirmed by his salary of 16 million pounds per year. And in the fall of 2021, Klopp’s merits were noted with the release of a book called “Believe in us! How Jurgen Klopp brought Liverpool back to the top.

Jurgen Klopp narrated Liverpool’s documentary film

At the same time, the documentary film “The End of the Storm,” produced by the team, was released. Previously, Amazon wanted to release a similar project about Liverpool’s 2019/2020 championship season, but Klopp forbade outsiders from filming in the locker room and other similar areas. In the film filmed by the club, Jurgen acted as the central narrator, confirming the existing title of a talented storyteller.

The opening of the 2022/2023 season for the Reds started with a victory over Manchester City in the FA Super Cup. Soon there was a landmark match with Bournemouth, which ended with a crushing score of 9:0 in favor of Jurgen’s team. During the same period, fans rejoiced at Liverpool’s biggest victory over Manchester City (7-0). By the way, the opposing coach Pep Guardiola admitted that he considers Klopp the most important rival in his career.

But at the end of the season, failures began; the club could not even qualify for the Champions League. Analysts assumed that the reason for this was problems with the physical fitness of the team’s key players and their injuries. 

Jurgen Klopp has taken a break from coaching

In January 2024, Jurgen Klopp announced that he was leaving Liverpool at the end of the season. The thoughts about the need to take a break from his coaching career were caused by the belief that his energy was running out and it was simply impossible to work in such a mode. At the same time, Klopp expressed great love for the city, the fans, and the team itself.

In February, the coach updated the team’s achievements – Liverpool became the champion of the English League Cup. The Reds played Chelsea in the final. For Klopp as coach of the Merseysiders, this was the 8th trophy.