Jurgen Klopp admits he doesn't want to leave Liverpool - 'I have to'

Jurgen Klopp admits he doesn’t actually want to leave Liverpool – he feels he has to. The German will step down at the end of the season.

Jurgen Klopp surprised football on Friday when he announced his intention to leave Liverpool at the end of the season. It’s a decision that rocks the club entirely – there will be big changes this summer.

Not only is Klopp leaving, after all, but his senior coaches as well as sporting director Jorg Schmadtke. The Reds will move to hire a new sporting director and then take on the near-impossible task of replacing their manager.

So why has Klopp made such a massive decision? The Liverpool boss explained his decision in an interview with Rio Ferdinand on TNT Sports and admits this isn’t actually something he wants to do.

“It’s not that I want to leave, it’s more that I have to,” said Klopp. “I can’t do it like that – I cannot be the guy there, who pushed the team to the Champions League. Why should I do the job? I never liked that.

“In the job it’s cool – then it’s training. I can’t do it like that. When I’m not in that moment, I’m absolutely fine and that’s exactly how it should be. I don’t want to be a passenger – the job is too important and the club is too important, so that’s why I decided.”

It’s an incredible decision from Klopp, in truth. He’s passing up a lot of money here by leaving early – he could remain for the final two years on his contract if he wanted.

Of course, Klopp has made plenty of money in his career but that doesn’t change this from being a principled decision first and foremost. He feels he can’t do the job justice, so he’s stepping aside.

Even if fans – and the club – would much rather he remained in charge, Klopp making one final decision for the good of the club is a fantastic way to go out.