Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is reportedly ‘in talks’ over a shock return to management with a club the Premier League champions could still face this season - and it’s not Real Madrid. The unexpected move could see the revered German back at Anfield, less than two years after he last led the Reds, when he stepped away citing that he was “running out of energy" with football management.
It is on Merseyside that Klopp is best known. Across nine years, he turned the Kop from doubters into believers, delivering the club its first league title in 30 years, as well as a sixth Champions League mantle, an FA Cup, two League Cups, the UEFA Super Cup, and the Club World Cup. He cemented his place as one of the greatest managers of all-time and moved into a Head of Global Soccer role at Red Bull.
But while Liverpool and Real Madrid have consistently been linked, it appears he could instead be tempted by yet another stress-inducing role - a job where he must roll up his sleeves rather than be given the keys to a ready-made winning machine - at a club begging to be woken from its sleeping giant status.
Jurgen Klopp on the middle with Liverpool managers Bob Paisley, Kenny Dalglish, Bill Shankley and Gerard Houllier Related
Jurgen Klopp's Stats Compared to Liverpool's Greatest Managers Prove he is Special
Success has many fathers, and Jurgen Klopp fits comfortably in the same bracket as Liverpool's finest Helmsmen.
Klopp Could Soon Return to Management with Shock Spanish Club
Jurgen Klopp
There were recent reports of dissatisfaction with his work within the Red Bull company, with departing Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner being earmarked as a potential replacement. While these rumours were rubbished by the Austrian franchise, who stated they were satisfied with Klopp's work, reports indicating a possible exit have reared their head again in the shape of Atletico Madrid.
Current Atletico boss Diego Simeone was sent off at Anfield in September and had to be dragged away from Liverpool supporters next to his dugout after the Reds' won 3-2 in the Champions League's initial league phase. He is the highest-paid manager in football, but seems to have been slowly but surely losing the vote of confidence of his employers as he nears five years without winning a trophy since their La Liga triumph in 2021.
In the summer, Simeone will enter the final year of his contract at the Wanda Metropolitano. However, Spanish television show El Chiringuito has claimed Klopp is in advanced negotiations about succeeding the Argentine, according to the Liverpool Echo. They claim Klopp is speaking with Mark Rowan, who is the CEO of Atletico majority shareholders, Apollo, though nothing appears concrete yet.
Theoretically, his appointment could see Klopp vs Liverpool take place - a scenario that those of an Anfield persuasion could never have imagined after this generation's Bill Shankly made clear that he'd never manage another club in England. That's because, though they are on opposite sides of the bracket, both the Reds and their potential Madrid opponents remain in the Champions League.
Atletico Madrid Job is Klopp's Perfect Cup of Tea
Wanda Metropolitano of Atletico Madrid
Wanda Metropolitano of Atletico Madrid
Long dwelling in the shadow of Real Madrid and Barcelona, taking on the Ateltico position is a challenge that would be right in Klopp’s wheelhouse. Never one to take on the easy jobs, the German - who also managed Mainz 05 and Borussia Dortmund - has only ever taken on vacancies that require a road to glory style storyline.
One thing he will be mindful of, however, is that Los Colchoneros may need a drastic squad rebuild after more than a decade under Simeone, where the dark arts of football have often been the foundation and defence viewed as the alpha and omega of successful tournament football.
Klopp’s rock-and-roll style may not translate smoothly with the current crop, meaning he would likely expect a strong scouting system to bring in the players he needs to succeed - even if a little patience will be required along the way.