Jurgen Klopp surprised people this week with a joke he made after Liverpool’s 5-1 win over Sparta Prague. The Reds’ boss was asked if any of the opposing players in the game had particularly impressed him, leading to Klopp wondering where the question was going.
“I retire in the summer,” he said. “Do you want me to take him on holiday?”
Now, it has never been said that Klopp was retiring this summer. The understanding has been that he’d leave Liverpool but eventually re-enter the game.
That was made particularly clear by his promise not to take another job in English football – not just another job period. There’s consistently been talk of the German national side wanting Klopp, for instance.
Well, it turns out that Klopp didn’t mean ‘retirement’ – he just wasn’t completely certain what it meant. He was asked about the quote by Sky Sports and was quick to clarify.
“I think some other people used that word [retirement] when I had my announcement and I thought that was the right way to say it,” Klopp explained.
“‘Step aside’ here. That’s the idea and I don’t know what happens after.”
So just a case of Klopp not having English as his first language. The boss was had a few moments like this down the years – just the nature of not growing up fluent in a language.
Klopp, then, won’t be retiring this season. He will have a year away from the game as per his agreement with Liverpool to leave with time remaining on his contract. By mid-2025, though, he’s going to face plenty of offers.
A return to club football? The Germany job? Klopp will have his pick of just about anything.
