Jurgen Klopp would find Germany job 'hard to turn down'

Doubts are beginning to creep in at Liverpool over the long-term future of manager Jurgen Klopp, with the 53-year-old being considered as a potential replacement for Joachim Low in the Germany setup.

Klopp's future has become the talk of the town at Liverpool at a time when the club are at one of the lowest points of his Anfield tenure. After four years of year-on-year progress culminated in the Premier League title last season, they have been brought back down to earth with a bang, and now face a fight just to qualify for Europe this term.

They were favourites to retain their title as recently as December, but have won just two league games since the 7-0 demolition of Crystal Palace and now sit 22 points behind leaders Manchester City, having played a game fewer.

It has been a difficult period in Klopp's personal life too, and all of this has culminated in a variety of reports on his future. Earlier this month, following the news about his mother's passing, he was forced to deny talk that he will take a break from management amid concerns about his mental wellbeing.

"I don't feel I need special support in the moment but it is nice. Rumours of me quitting or taking break? Not true," he said after the defeat to Leicester.

"Thanks for all the support, people tell me about it. I am very grateful for it. But they can think about other things as nobody needs to worry about me.

“We do it for our people. I’d prefer to fight this fight with our people in the stadium so we can show real unity and togetherness. We fight together still but in different places.”

Klopp is publicly showing a brave face, but a report from The Mirror suggests that there are now some concerns at the club that he could be tempted to manage Germany, should Joachim Low find himself out of a job following the Euros.

The long-serving Germany boss is believed to be on thin ice after their feeble defence of the World Cup in 2018, and it's believed a poor tournament this time around could prompt a change of heart. Klopp has long been lined up as a potential successor, and The Mirror cite a source close to the Liverpool boss as saying he would find the lure of international management 'hard to turn down' at this stage of his career.

The report, which does seem a little far-fetched, very much depends on a number of factors falling into place between now and the summer. It centres on Rangers boss Steven Gerrard being lined up as a potential replacement, and while that may be the eventual plan at Liverpool, it's hard to imagine them throwing their faith behind the club legend just yet.

He stands on the brink of legendary status at Ibrox, with just seven points needed to clinch the Scottish Premiership for the first time in ten years, but it seems likely Liverpool would want to see him sustain that success before pulling the trigger.

Should he win another couple of trophies in Scotland, he will very much come into consideration towards the end of his Rangers contract in 2024 - a date which conveniently dovetails with the expiry of Klopp's Liverpool deal.


Source : 90min