Jurgen Klopp admits he has ’new energy‘ after Liverpool rebuild
Jurgen Klopp has admitted he has a renewed sense of purpose at Liverpool after a summer rebuild of his ageing squad.
The departures of Fabinho and Jordan Henderson left major holes in Liverpool’s midfield which were filled by the signings of Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Wataru Endo and Ryan Gravenberch for close to £150m.
Having also lost Roberto Firmino at the end of a 12-month spell which saw Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo arrive to rejuvenate Liverpool’s attack, there’s a different look about the Reds these days and Klopp is loving every second of it.
„It was the job we had to do,“ Klopp said of the rebuild. „I had seven years at [Borussia] Dortmund – when I left there, it was a moment where change was needed. We would have had to change players in different roles – or the manager. Dortmund, in the end, did both. So I left and they changed a lot anyway. So [this summer] was a moment for that.
„It is not the first time I was allowed to do something like that. I love it. It gives me completely new energy.
„It’s great – this team has a completely new set up. I loved everything about the seven years before but obviously we all need energy sources and looking at these faces every day to see how much they enjoy the new challenge gives me energy as well. I know it is words, but it feels like that.
„We don’t want to compare or think, ‚How did [his original team] do that?‘. We try to give this team a chance to create their own destiny. That is what we decided. That is what we live now and that is how it works. I don’t know where it will lead but it is good fun anyway.“
Since their 1-1 draw with Chelsea on the opening weekend of the Premier League season, Liverpool have won each of their seven games across all competitions.
Klopp’s side have climbed up to second in the league ahead of Saturday’s meeting with Tottenham Hotspur, while they also got off to the perfect starts in both the Carabao Cup and Europa League with victories over Leicester City and LASK, respectively.
The manager’s renewed joy played a role in his decision to reject an approach from the German FA over leading the national team earlier this month, with Klopp preferring to continue his work with Liverpool instead.