Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp broke Reds hearts in January when he announced he would be stepping down at the end of the season – but the decision is a long time coming

Jurgen Klopp announced in January that he is leaving Liverpool at the end of the season.

The news rocked the footballing world with Reds supporters devasted at Klopp’s apparent sudden decision to part company with the club after what will be nine years come the conclusion of this campaign.

But Klopp had always been open about his plans to one day vacate the hot seat at Anfield, previously admitting he never envisaged himself emulating Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United and enjoying nearly three decades at one club.

Back in 2020, Klopp spoke out about his future at Liverpool and in football in general, telling German publication SportBuzzer: “I’ll take a year off and ask myself if I miss football. If I say no, then that will be the end of coach Jurgen Klopp.”

In the same interview, he hinted at what might have prompted his decision to finally stand down this season, revealing what it is about the job he doesn’t like. He said: “If one day I am no longer a coach, there is one thing I will not miss: the brutal tension immediately before the game.”

Klopp didn’t use these exact words when he tried to explain to Liverpool fans his reason for leaving in a statement released at the time of his January announcement. But he admitted he finds the job exhausting, suggesting the ‘brutal tension’ of the game has finally become too much.

“I am convinced [the decision to leave Liverpool] is the one I have to take,” Klopp said. “It is that I am, how can I say it, running out of energy. I have no problem now, obviously, I knew it already for longer that I will have to announce it at one point, but I am absolutely fine now. I know that I cannot do the job again and again and again and again.

“After the years we had together and after all the time we spent together and after all the things we went through together, the respect grew for you, the love grew for you and the least I owe you is the truth – and that is the truth.”