Jurgen Klopp’s passion for football was there for everyone to see.
The German boss came across as one of the nicest guys in the sport, but once he stepped into a stadium environment, the 57-year-old became a different person.
Trent Alexander-Arnold said this about Klopp when he first arrived at Liverpool, labelling his former boss as “a strange blend of intimidating and very welcoming.”
Klopp was an intimidating figure for many people in English football as everyone had to get used to his tradition of watching the opposition warm up, some of his post-match rants about referees, and the fourth official would get it on the sideline from time to time.
That fire was also present while the German coach was in charge at Borussia Dortmund, and former Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg has now shared the details of a fiery exchange he had with the 57-year-old back in 2014.
Photo credit should read PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images
Photo credit should read PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images
Mark Clattenburg’s fiery Bernabeu row with Jurgen Klopp
Real Madrid hosted Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie back in April 2014, and Clattenburg was tasked with overseeing the contest as one of England’s most experienced referees.
The La Liga side were comfortable winners of the match against the German giants, winning 3-0 at the Bernabeu courtesy of goals from Gareth Bale, Isco and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Speaking on the latest episode of The Overlap Fan Debate, Clattenburg shares the details of a row he had with Klopp after that game, which all stemmed from a picture with Real Madrid legend Marcelo.
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“I had a big run-in with Jurgen, and I was lucky because it was at Real Madrid, and he was the Dortmund manager, and they’d just been beaten 3-0,” Clattenburg stated.
“I thought I had a good game. It was Marcelo, the fullback, crazy, but he says, ‘Can I have a picture?’. I’m like, ‘What with me?’ and he said, ‘Yeah, can I have a picture?’. Referees never get pictures with players.
“I said, ‘Yeah, of course’. And I’m standing outside my dressing room, and his wife was there and some of his family and Jurgen came past, and he went, ‘Is that why we got beat 3-0?’.
“I turned around and I said ‘You’re f***** lucky that you got beat 3-0, f*** off’. Everybody laughed, you know what I mean, but I was pleased I was in Real Madrid and not Dortmund, because I would have had to get out of Dortmund alive.”
Clattenberg would also share stories from his time with Klopp in England and how the former Liverpool boss once tried to intimidate him at Chelsea.
Jurgen Klopp’s intimidation technique whilst at Liverpool
One of Clattenburg’s first games officiating a Liverpool match during the Klopp era came at Stamford Bridge as the Reds took on Chelsea in November 2015.
The Englishman would also share details from this contest and how the German would try to intimidate referees before certain games by watching them warm up, in addition to the opposition.
Clattenberg also shared another technique Klopp used to use and how it played out in an awkward exchange at Stamford Bridge when the former Liverpool boss came to deliver the teamsheets.
“He never, ever brought the team sheet in, never,” Clattenburg said. “It was always the assistant manager. You used to have to brief the captains (before a match), so we would brief the captains at the clubs.
“Jurgen came in. It was against Chelsea when the portakabins were there because the stadium was getting renovated. It was Jordan (Henderson) and John Terry who were the captains.
“I was surprised when he (Klopp) came in, I’m thinking ‘That’s not usual, Jurgen coming in with the team sheets’, and he just stares at us, and he stares at us for 30 seconds, and I just didn’t say anything.
“And John Terry and Jordan were like ‘Come on Mark, say something’. And I never said anything. And then after the 30 seconds, I thought this is getting nowhere so I just shook John Terry’s hand, Jordan Henderson, ‘enjoy the game, lads’. It was like intimidation.”
Liverpool would go on to win the game 3-1 thanks to a Philippe Coutinho brace and a Christian Benteke goal. It looked like Klopp’s method worked, as it was a day where Clattenburg did not have one of his best performances.