Jürgen Klopp mentioned he believes Arne Slot’s imprint on Liverpool is already “apparent,” including that he does not miss the job, however he does miss the gamers.
Slot took cost of his first Premier League match on Saturday, and helped Liverpool a 2-0 win at Ipswich.
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It was the primary aggressive match of the post-Klopp period, as Slot changed the person who took cost of Liverpool for nearly 9 years and led them to the Champions League title in 2019, the Premier League in 2020, an FA Cup and two League Cup triumphs.
Changing the German coach was all the time going to be troublesome, however Klopp mentioned he was delighted when Liverpool turned to Slot and concluded their enterprise early in the summertime.
In an interview with ESPN Netherlands, Klopp mentioned: “Arne, yeah. Actually good coach. I used to be actually comfortable after I heard that Liverpool was going for Arne Slot. I wasn’t concerned in something, it shouldn’t be like that, and I am not this sort of man within the background, nonetheless having some strings and stuff. Like I do not need that. The membership is just too massive, too good. [The] Individuals are too good.
“Lots of issues modified since we left. However the one concern for me was, will they get an excellent coach? Liverpool was early and Liverpool acquired a prime, prime, prime resolution in Arne Slot.”
He added: “I like his soccer so much [how he] performed it with, with [Feyenoord], in order that’s actually good. I noticed the Sevilla recreation, the preseason pleasant at Anfield — massive elements of it have been actually good. And the league recreation [against Ipswich], the second half was clearly actually good.
“Nevertheless it’s not vital that I prefer it, you possibly can see he’s an excellent coach and the staff, I do know now higher than most, is a extremely good squad, is a extremely good staff. So it’s going to work out rather well.”
Klopp and Slot spoke within the early phases of the handover interval, and have saved in contact since. And having watched Liverpool’s preseason and overcome Ipswich, Klopp can already see clear indicators of Slot’s philosophy making an affect on the membership.
“We spoke one or two instances [at the start]. I believe we texted just a few extra instances. However there may be nothing I can inform him what he could not know himself,” Klopp mentioned. “Proper now from my aspect, simply to provide optimistic suggestions at first as a result of we’re all human beings and he labored his socks off.
“I do know that as a result of the tour is tremendous intense in a 12 months when you may have Euros and Copa, you do not have the staff collectively, however they arrive, you may have one week till the primary matchday and stuff like that. So I believe he had related scenario, however precisely the identical scenario? Positively not.
“Once I noticed the video games, that is why I watched it, to not suppose, oh, how does it look? The work he did was apparent, the concepts apparent. And that is the most effective you possibly can say in regards to the coach.”
Klopp has saved in contact with a number of the gamers since leaving the membership, together with captain Virgil van Dijk.
“Unbelievable participant,” Klopp mentioned of Van Dijk. “Unbelievable participant. Unbelievable man. So I miss them. I do not miss the job, [but] I miss all of the individuals there. We are able to, we are able to see one another every time we wish sooner or later.”
Van Dijk’s contract is up on the finish of the season, however Klopp wouldn’t be drawn on how issues will work out between his previous captain and the membership.
“I don’t know what he, what they’ll do,” the previous coach mentioned. “And it is all their very own choice. They’re grown-ups. They are going to do the best stuff.”
Klopp is taking a break from administration and has vowed to take a 12 months off away from the sport. He says he feels “totally charged” having had 9 weeks of leisure since ending at Liverpool, however is in no rush to return earlier than his self-imposed one year are up. He spent the summer time with household, watching the Olympics, taking part in padel and preserving an in depth eye on how his Liverpool assistant Pep Lijnders is doing in command of RB Salzburg.
“I did not say I can go once more,” he mentioned. “It is simply, I am in an excellent temper? Yeah. Life is completely different if we aren’t liable for these type of issues, so I actually get pleasure from that.
“I get pleasure from nonetheless watching soccer and particularly Salzburg proper now as a result of, [manager] Pep [Lijnders] is tremendous vital to me so I like watching it and prefer to see the progress. I noticed Liverpool taking part in as nicely [which] was actually good. These are the issues I watched, however moreover that, it was numerous Olympics and stuff like that.
“Good summer time to date. You need to organise the time without work as nicely, as a result of lots of people need to meet you and stuff like that. So we needed to relax a bit of bit, however we’re superb. We’ve spent now three correct weeks with the grandkids and the children collectively. It was lovely.”
