Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp expressed some mixed feelings about Chelsea FC failing with their transfer policies this season. On one hand, Klopp said he’s happy to see that Chelsea’s transfer window approach, where they spent as much money as possible, on a ton of players, flopped tremendously.
But on the other hand, the German also said that he’s a little bit sad for Stamford Bridge, as they are a once mighty club that has now fallen.
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Naturally, any manager of a big money club is going to be happy when a fellow big six rival stumbles. And obviously, there is only so much that a manager will admit to, along those lines, in public commentary.
“We will do business and I understand that football is crazy, it always is,” Klopp said in an exclusive interview with Sky Sports.
“It means that because Liverpool is doing well, we need five, six or seven players. I feel a little bit for Chelsea to be honest because they are a top, top team. But it’s good to see that you can’t just bring top players together and hope it works out.”
That last part is really the money quote (pun intended) right there. Chelsea, by themselves, outspent the all of the other big five leagues in Europe COMBINED in the January transfer window.
Since Todd Boehly took over they have broken numerous transfer spending records, splashing the cash to the tune of close to $700 million. They have brought in 17 new players over the course of two windows, but they currently sit 12th in the table, and didn’t seriously contend for any trophies this season.
They may not even finish on the first page of the standings in 2022-23, and they sacked two managers, Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter, in the process. It makes sense that Klopp would take contentment in seeing a rival club try to play real life fantasy football, and for them to see that backfire.
He knows a similar situation could happen with his club, and with it, bring unrealistic expectations from the Liverpool community; potentially.
“You have to bring a team and that’s what their guys [the owners] there [at Chelsea] underestimated and gave their coaches an impossible job to do,” Klopp continued.
“You cannot have two dressing rooms; you cannot train on two pitches. You have to have team spirit. That’s the only reason why I’m happy about [Chelsea’s failure].
“Chelsea will be fine because they will be fine in the end and be incredibly strong. It’s an example at the highest level where you can’t do it like that. You have to bring in the right players and build a new team. This team had a sensational story, now we write a new story.”
He is absolutely right, things like team chemistry and intangibles are critical. You can’t just throw money at your problems in the sports. And the Chelsea struggles hit close to home for Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool.
For much of this season, the media closely analogized the two clubs, because they were having such similar struggles.
The Reds have recovered, and are now on an uptick. For Chelsea, they still haven’t found rock bottom yet.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He’s written for numerous publications, including the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. He regularly appears on NTD News and WGN News Now. Follow the website on Twitter and Instagram.