Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has been out of management since 2024 and is currently Red Bull's head of global soccer as Chelsea have been urged to act
Tom Victor Senior Sports Journalist and Neil Docking
15:31, 04 Jan 2026Updated 15:31, 04 Jan 2026
Chelsea have been told they should approach Liverpool legend Jurgen Klopp for their vacant manager position
View 3 Images
Chelsea have been told they should approach Liverpool legend Jurgen Klopp for their vacant manager position(Image: Marcel Engelbrecht - firo sportphoto, Getty Images)
While Chelsea search for a permanent replacement for Enzo Maresca, they've been urged to explore a stunning move for Liverpool legend Jurgen Klopp.
Maresca's departure from Stamford Bridge was announced on New Year's Day, with Strasbourg boss Liam Rosenior emerging as the early favourite to take over. However, former Chelsea favourite Joe Cole has suggested the club should sound out Klopp about the vacancy.
The ex-Liverpool manager has remained out of the dugout since departing Anfield at the conclusion of the 2023/24 campaign and has spent the past 12 months in his role as Red Bull's head of global soccer.
Enzo Maresca after Arsenal vs Chelsea in March 2025
View 3 Images
Chelsea are looking for a new manager to succeed Enzo Maresca(Image: Getty Images)
When pressed to identify his preferred choice for the Chelsea position, ex-Liverpool midfielder Cole revealed to Paddy Power: "I know it's a mental one but Jurgen Klopp, I know he probably won't even consider it because it's Chelsea and he's Liverpool, but you just never know.
"If your main aim as a football club is to win trophies and you have the money, you go and speak to the top, top boys," he continued. "I know it seems like it's pie in the sky, but if you don't have that mindset then you're always banking on developing the next best manager, which they thought they were doing with Enzo Maresca."
Cole also praised Rosenior's credentials, reports the Mirror. He said: "I've known Liam a long time, he was on trial as a young player at West Ham and had a very good career in the Premier League. Obsessive about football, fits the bill in terms of where Chelsea have gone with their last few managers, young and something to prove."
Jurgen Klopp
View 3 Images
Jurgen Klopp has been linked with a move back to Liverpool(Image: Getty Images)
As Cole suggests, persuading Klopp to return to the dugout with one of Liverpool's Premier League competitors would be an enormous challenge - and if the German were to do so, it would contradict the pledges he made when announcing his Anfield departure in January 2024.
Article continues below
"What I know definitely – I will never, ever manage a different club in England than Liverpool, 100%. That's not possible," he declared. "My love for this club, my respect for the people is too big. I couldn't. I couldn't for a second think about it. There's no chance. This is part of my life, we are part of the family, we feel home here. There's no chance to do that."
He reinforced this position more recently during a chat with Diary of a CEO. "I said I will never coach a different team in England so that means, if [I did return], then it's Liverpool. So, yeah, theoretically it is possible," he explained.
"I don't even know exactly [what might tempt me back]. I love what I do now. I don't miss coaching. I don't. I do coach but it's just different, it's not players."