Jurgen Klopp: I turned down German national team to rebuild Liverpool for Slot | OneFootball

Jurgen Klopp has opened up on the international job offer he turned down in favour of seeing Liverpool’s rebuild through—one that helped set the stage for Arne Slot’s title-winning debut.

In an interview with WELT, the 58-year-old revealed that the German FA approached him while he was still managing us, but he rejected the opportunity to take charge of his national team.

“I was asked,” he admitted. “But I said: ‘No, I can’t do that. I made a promise and I want to fulfil it.’”

Klopp snubbed his country to complete our rebuild

(Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)

That promise, of course, was to guide Liverpool through a major transitional period following the departures of key figures like Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino, Jordan Henderson and James Milner.

He’d already completed a rebuild when first arriving at the club, something he spoke about when discussing the importance of Alisson Becker, but this time was different.

Klopp had already begun reshaping the squad with younger players such as Darwin Nunez, Cody Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszlai, but insisted on staying for what he called the “final phase” of the rebuild.

“We had to go through a big change,” he said. “It was important to me to see it through and leave the club in a strong position for whoever followed.”

He added: “I wanted to end this chapter properly.”

That decision proved pivotal. The squad Klopp left behind—featuring additions like Alexis Mac Allister and Wataru Endo—laid the foundations for Arne Slot to deliver Liverpool’s 20th league title in his first season as head coach.

Klopp also hinted that he felt a sense of personal duty to guide the club back into contention before stepping down.

“I felt responsible. I didn’t want to leave in the middle of a process.”

It’s a story that will surely spark even more appreciation for what Klopp gave us, both in terms of trophies and principles.

Arne Slot has been quick to praise his predecessor for the squad he inherited and now he’s started his own rebuild, with Jurgen himself praising the signing of Florian Wirtz.

It’s no surprise, then, that Liverpool fans continue to view Klopp not only as one of our greatest managers—but also as one of our most selfless.

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