Jurgen Klopp insists he has no plans to return to management and does not miss the dugout one jot.
The Liverpool legend is more than grateful to be off the hamster wheel and admitted he does not even bother to watch every Reds game in his free time.
He officially began work as Red Bull’s Global Head of Soccer in January this year, still an intensive role but not one that involves the same level of scrutiny as management.
The German opened up on his new life involving travel cinema trips, weddings, skiing, padel, and golf in a laugh-a-minute interview with The Athletic. His seven-month hiatus after leaving Anfield was a blissful period.
Klopp says that as much as he lived for the touchline, his ‘movie star’ lifestyle wasn’t all it was cracked up to be; it was exhausting, sometimes mundane, and left little time for loved ones.
So, he won’t coach again? ‘That’s what I think. But you don’t know. I’m 58. If I started again at 65, everybody will say, “You said you’ll never do it again!” Er, sorry, I thought 100 per cent (when I said it)! That is what I think now. I don’t miss anything.
Jurgen Klopp says he does not miss management and has absolutely no plans to return (pictured with his wife Ulla)
He now works in an intensive role with Red Bull, but is able to be himself more and have liberty
Having more time to play padel was one of the plus points of taking time away from working
‘The thought was not that I would do this until the end of my life.’
Since starting out as a manager he has been to two weddings – one was his own with Ulla in 2005 and one was a couple of months ago. He claims he never went to the cinema as a manager, but has been four times in the last two months.
A more carefree lifestyle suits him. He didn’t even watch every Liverpool game in his seven-month hiatus. ‘I didn’t know when games started. I was just out,’ he told The Athletic.
‘I played sports. We enjoyed life, spent time with the grandkids, completely normal stuff, knowing I will work again. But knowing as well, that I don’t want to work as a coach anymore.’
He describes how he never really got to enjoy the locations he visited as a manager because the itinerary strictly involved the hotel, training pitch, or stadium.
His wife, Ulla, is now in charge of holidays – much better than the Premier League or Bundesliga executives dictating when he can and can’t kick back.
As we’ve seen, he cherished his first Christmas off in a decade in December as he hit the ski slopes, sharing the ‘incredible views and an amazing time’ on Instagram.
There has also been plenty of time for padel, another of his beloved sports. He launched his own padel range with Wilson earlier this year and is hoping to open a state-of-the-art facility with nine courts in Wavertree, Liverpool.
Klopp enjoyed his first Christmas off in a decade last year, taking to the ski slopes with a grin
He did not feel pressure to watch every Liverpool game during his hiatus, often choosing to spend time outside and with his grandkids
He has even enjoyed a sole trip to the Formula One in Austria, though he does not work directly with the racing department.
During his hiatus, he also spent time at his and Ulla’s £3.4million Mallorca mansion – an ‘eco-paradise’ of sun.
His new life of variety and learning is abreath of fresh air, and one that has him looking ‘younger and learner’ wearing a white tee-shirt and a big grin, according to The Athletic.
Escaping the weight of the world that management can feel like has been a positive in that regard. Klopp added: ‘Think about your absolute movie star. For me, Daniel Craig, James Bond. And you think, “Oh my God, he’s James Bond!” I would think: Where is he right now? What is he doing?
‘But in the end, he gets up in the morning, he brushes his teeth. He’s on a film set and a film set is not what we see later in the cinema. You’re sitting there and you do the same scene 25 times. You don’t think about these things.
‘But I had this life. I know how almost all football managers live. They live for the job, all-in. You can’t be successful in this business without doing it like that. But then I tell Pep (Guardiola) — he improved his (golf) handicap with age! I didn’t have a f****** minute of time to play golf! So that’s why he’s a genius and I am not.’
One thing that might have got him down was the reaction to him taking his Red Bull role, particularly in Germany.
Klopp’s role now is global, helping to see a portfolio of teams which spans from Germany, to France, to Austria, to Japan and Brazil and America, not to mention a lesser standing at Leeds United.
Fans in Germany protested against his involvement with Red Bull, but he doesn’t seem to care
He was criticised intensely in Germany for taking a role with Red Bull, specifically because of their involvement with RB Leipzig. Fans at his former clubs Mainz and Borussia Dortmund were miffed.
But that was apparently water off a duck’s back.
‘I knew it [that the reaction would come],’ he says. ‘I’m German. I know what people in Germany think about the involvement of Red Bull in football. They love Red Bull. In all departments. But in football? No. So whatever, they want to do it that way.
‘Funnily enough, it was only in Germany where the reaction was like that. But that’s fine — no problem. Everybody can think what they want. You just have to accept that I do what I want as long as I don’t hurt anybody.’
So what does he want to do, then? ‘The last thing I want to be is the old man in the room. The one who says, ‘”n the past, everything was good. We did it like that!” Hopefully I finish before I reach that point. I want to be the counterpart. I want to be, if necessary, the emergency call of the coaches or sporting directors, the guy they call when they don’t know who to talk to. You need to create a relationship.’
