Jürgen Klopp was once confirmed as manager of Liverpool FC in October 2015 to a rapturous reception. His super-sized personality and all-or-nothing style of football and management made him the easiest choice to pump up the volume at Anfield and lift Liverpool out of a slump.
The appointment sparked hysteria within the city with fans and club officials delighted to get the coach they’d long admired from afar and eager to see the have an effect on he would have at the club and the Premier League.
Klopp is the manager to show players into winners, to get that little bit more from them and develop into teams like mid-table Borussia Dortmund into title winners and one in all Europe’s most admired sides in just two seasons. He’s authentic, approachable and funny, charming media and fans alike. He’s also merciless and exceptionally driven, his quick temper bubbling away barely under the surface.
Expectations have been high and even if results haven’t gone their way, Liverpool’s exciting football and Klopp’s pitch-side passion have enthralled, culminating in a triumphant return to Champions League football in 2017/18.
Renowned football correspondent on both the German and English games, Raphael Honigstein tells the definitive story of Klopp’s career, transformative footballing genius and how he’s bringing the noise to Anfield.