Being told to leave a club is rarely a straightforward process, and one former Liverpool player has since revealed exactly what he thinks of Jurgen Klopp after he pushed him to the exit door
Comments
Sport
09:39, 16 Jun 2025
Jurgen Klopp waving
Jurgen Klopp admitted he was too embarrassed to ask one of his players' names after failing to recognise him
(Image: Getty Images)
Former Liverpool defender Brad Smith holds no ill will towards Jurgen Klopp despite being sold by the German. Klopp, 58, was at Anfield for barely six months before Smith's eight-year stay on Merseyside was brought to an end.
The left-back, 31, had barely featured under Klopp's predecessor, Brendan Rodgers, since graduating from Liverpool's academy. And although it was Klopp who finally handed him his real first-team breakthrough, their relationship didn't get off to the smoothest of starts.
The Reds' squad in late 2015 was dotted with talent, but not nearly the number Klopp sought as he looked to break a barren cycle without silverware. And Smith was seemingly among the more anonymous players when he first arrived.
"We played in Sion on a frozen pitch [in December 2015]," Klopp told The Telegraph last year as he looked back upon his time at Anfield. "I learned a day before that we had Brad Smith and he stood right next to me in training and it was too embarrassing to ask him who he was."
That admission is a surprising one considering Smith assisted Divock Origi in a League Cup quarter-final hammering of Southampton just days prior. Not only that, but it wasn't long after Klopp's arrival that Smith was awarded a new long-term deal, having been registered but without a contract prior to that.
The Australian became a more frequent figure under Klopp towards the end of the 2015/16 campaign. He later flew home from Liverpool's pre-season tour of the United States to join Bournemouth, but he remains indebted to his old boss.
"Every time I go back there with Bournemouth he’ll give me a big Klopp hug and we’ll have a little chat," said Smith in 2019. "He’s a great manager and I owe a lot to him.
Brad Smith of Liverpool poses with the Academy players player of the season award with Jurgen Klopp and Raj Luthra at the Liverpool FC End of Season Awards at The Exhibition Centre on May 12, 2016
Brad Smith was named Academy Players' Player of the Season after breaking out under Klopp
"A great man. He just said, ‘I think it’s your time to go out and spread your wings and do what you need to do.' I owe a lot to Klopp for kind of bringing me back in and giving me a chance. He kind of shot my career up.”
Smith eventually found his way to Major League Soccer in 2018 following a loan spell with the Seattle Sounders. He joined the club permanently in 2020 before subsequent moves to DC United and the Houston Dynamo.
Currently playing for FC Cincinnati since March, the left-back has come to love his time in MLS. And it was thanks to Klopp's show of faith that his profile enjoyed enough of a bump for Bournemouth to take notice.
FC Cincinnati defender Brad Smith running with the ball during the 2025 MLS game between Toronto FC and FC Cincinnati at BMO Field
Smith is currently playing for FC Cincinnati, whom he joined in March
He wasn't the only senior asset Klopp cut ties with in that summer of 2016 as fellow defenders Martin Skrtel, Kolo Toure and Jose Enrique also left Liverpool. It wasn't long before the manager's new imprint began to take shape at Anfield, plotting the path for his Premier League and Champions League successes in the years that followed.
On the first anniversary of Klopp's Liverpool exit, Smith's tale stands as testament to the kind of relationships he built with his players, superstars or otherwise. Even if he didn't know who they were at the time...
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.