Former Borussia Dortmund boss Jurgen Klopp was officially named Brendan Rodgers‘ replacement yesterday, and held his introductory Liverpool press conference today. Optimism and excitement are both in long supply at Anfield now that the German has replaced the recently sacked Northern Irishman.
Liverpool supporters are through the roof right now, as evidenced by the 35,000 people who tracked Jurgen Klopp’s flight from Dortmund to Liverpool online yesterday via a flight radar app.
Klopp is optimistic as well saying that he’ll deliver a “title” to Liverpool within the first four years. When translated from German to English, the word “title” might mean any kind of trophy or “silverware.” However, given the full translation, it appears that Jurgen Klopp is referring to a Premier League title.
“This could be a really special day,” he said.
“We could start in a very difficult league but we can be successful in a special Liverpool way.”
“Twenty-five years ago [Liverpool’s last title] is a long time. In this time all people have tried to get better, to improve, to take the next title, but history is only the base for us.”
“It is all the people are interested in but you don’t take history in your backpack and carry it with you for 25 years. We can wait for it but I don’t want to say we can wait 20 years.”
“If we sit here in four years I think we’ll have won one title — I’m pretty sure. If not, the next one may be in Switzerland.”
Premier League championships are the bar for success at Liverpool- they’ve won 18 of them. However, it’s been a really long time since the most recent one- 1990. The Reds came very close in 2013-14; finishing second to Manchester City. The club also has just one trophy in the past nine years- the 2012 League Cup. Klopp led Dortmund to a runner-up finish in the 2012-13 UEFA Champions League. In 588 games leading BVB and Mainz, he’s won 288 games, lost 153, and drawn 147 times.
If Jose Mourinho is “The Special One,” and David Moyes was “The Chosen One” then Jurgen Klopp is “The Normal One.”
“I come from the Black Forest, I am an average guy,” he said at his introductory presser. When asked who he was, when his league-rival from FC Chelsea, José Mourinho as “The Special One” call, Klopp said: “I am the Normal One.”
“For sure the Premier League is one of the most difficult leagues in the world because five, six or seven clubs can be the champion and at the end only the one is the champion,” Klopp said.
“This is a great club with great potential, fast players, strong players, creative players and good defenders.”
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