Jurgen Klopp admits he was surprised by Liverpool’s offer of a new six-year contract just nine months after he was appointed manager, but has revealed he had no hesitation in extending his commitment to the club as it’s the “right relationship.”
The German will now occupy the Anfield helm until 2022, signing the prolonged proposal on Friday, after Fenway Sports Group initiated negotiations as a show of complete trust in him.
Klopp’s old terms, inked on October 8 last year, were due to expire in 2018 and contained the option of an additional 12 months.
But with Liverpool’s owners fully confident there is no better candidate to reconstruct the club, and the former Borussia Dortmund coach determined to implement a long-term blueprint, there is now likely to be much-needed stability at Anfield.
“It’s really a big moment,” Klopp said at Tranmere on Friday when discussing the development after a 1-0 win in their opening pre-season friendly.
“I came a few months ago and had the first press conference and everybody asked me how it feels and I couldn’t imagine. A few months later, now we talk about a long-term relationship – obviously something happened in these eight months and I’m really happy about the opportunity to be at the club for a long time.
“I know how the world of football is and I know what everybody thinks – that contracts don’t mean anything. In my opinion, they mean a lot; because it’s a clear statement in the moment, you don’t do anything like this when you think you want to quit early. We are all convinced about our way.
“We know it’s really difficult, it will be really difficult. It was difficult and it will be still, when you see what happens around us. I like this sign for consistency. In life we have to make decisions and we made the decision to stay together. Usually you don’t have to make this decision and you wait [to see] what happens. It was an early moment when the club asked me and I was surprised, but when I thought about it I thought it was good and felt right, and so we did it. Now we are all happy.”
Klopp’s driving ambition is to restore Liverpool as a powerhouse both on and off the pitch. The manager’s plan to achieve that is all-encompassing though, and not merely focused on results.
He is interested in the advancement of several aspects of the club, especially the academy, which he would like to be housed on the same site with Liverpool’s first-team.
“We really need to be successful, that’s clear; we need to develop the club, we need to develop a lot of things," he added.
“We’re already building a new stand, we’re thinking about bringing the academy and Melwood together, things like this.
“We think about everything at the club and this is much longer-term than my contract. So it’s really important that we do the right things so this wonderful club can be successful.
“We all feel very responsible for the club and for the people around. Everybody can be sure that we’ll try our best and we’ll see what it brings.”
Klopp was not alone in extending his stay at Liverpool, with his trusted assistants Zeljko Buvac and Peter Krawietz also signing new deals.
The manager has revealed the trio discussed the decision of committing until 2022 with their families, and reached the conclusion that they did not want to work anywhere else.
“I started thinking about it and, for me, is there a better option around? Do I want to train another club or work at another club? I asked Peter and Zeljko, we asked our family, and we said ‘no, that’s the club, let’s do it’,” Klopp explained.
“It’s about giving a sign that this is the right thing. Because we know it will not be easy and, actually, if it’s not easy everybody starts thinking about the manager and saying ‘change this’.
“We don’t think we have to change the manager or big things in the next few years; we think this is the right relationship. Now we have to use it.
“Go through the hard times and hopefully the good times, all celebrate together and suffer together. At the end, be really happy about the time we had together.”
- Goal