Jurgen Klopp’s time at Liverpool provided the club with some of the greatest achievements of the modern era, but history suggests his shock departure could mark a new low.
Klopp moved to Liverpool in 2015. His nine years at the club is one of the longest in recent Premier League history, surpassing Sir Alex Ferguson’s 27 years at Manchester United, Arsene Wegner’s 22 years at Arsenal and David’s 11 years Moyes at Everton.In Klopp’s first season, the team lost the League Cup and Europa League finals, but big wins followed. Progress compared to the previous year saw the club reach their second consecutive Champions League final, lift the trophy in the 2018/19 season and win their first Premier League title the following year.Managers rarely stay at a club as long as Klopp. And it’s even rarer for a club to maintain short-term success after the departure of a long-term manager.
Michael Owen has recommended former Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso for the role, while the likes of Roberto De Zerbi, Julian Nagelsmann, Zinedine Zidane and Steven Gerrard are also in the mix. The buzz in the Liverpool dressing room after Klopp’s announcement added to fans’ fears of an uncertain future.
Captain Virgil van Dijk: ‘Can you imagine staying at the club?’ To the question: “This is a big question. “I don’t know,” he said.”The club has a big task ahead. This is known. “There are a lot of employees leaving and changing to replace managers, rather than just managers,” he said.”So the club has a lot of work ahead of it and I’m looking forward to seeing where it goes.”He has since taken steps to clarify his comments, but his future at Liverpool remains uncertain. Klopp’s coaching staff and sporting director Jörg Schumatt are expected to go with him. The successful exodus of former managers from the Premier League giants suggests Liverpool have a huge task ahead of them to avoid imminent collapse.
Ferguson’s shadow growsSir Alex Ferguson’s 27 years at Manchester United will go down in history. After joining in 1986, he led the club to second place in the league in 1987–86. A few years later, the team lost the 1990 FA Cup final to Crystal Palace and the floodgates opened. But when Ferguson stepped down as manager in 2013, few could have predicted that United would not win a league title for more than a decade and the wait continued.
Everton manager David Moyes was invited to take on the role. However, Moyes was sacked less than a year into his six-year contract after failing to qualify for the UEFA Champions League for the first time since the 1995–96 season. Ryan Giggs became caretaker manager and Louis van Gaal became his assistant in May 2014.They won the FA Cup for the twelfth time, but it wasn’t enough. Van Gaal was sacked in 2016 and replaced by Jose Mourinho as the team finished fifth in the league. The club enjoyed some success under the Special One, but he was sacked in December 2018 after falling behind rivals United.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Michael Carrick and Ralph Rangnick came and went before Erik ten Hag was appointed to the role in 2021.
Ten Hag had some success, but there were also some very poor performances, including a 7-0 defeat to bitter rivals Liverpool. United are currently ninth in the table and, 11 years after his departure, there is no way they will match Ferguson’s success. Arsenal still have a long way to goFrench manager Arsene Wenger joined Arsenal in 1996. He overhauled the club and introduced new tactics and physical training. The innovation paid off. In eight of his first nine seasons at the club, Arsenal finished first or second in the league.Under his leadership, the Gunners have won three Premier League titles and seven FA Cups and remain the only team to finish a Premier League season unbeaten.
