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Jurgen Klopp clear on why he's leaving Liverpool and what he's done for Arne Slot
Jurgen Klopp had his successor in mind when making his shocking decision to depart Liverpool and hand over the reins to Arne Slot.
Jurgen Klopp departs Liverpool safe in the knowledge Arne Slot is inheriting solid foundations. The German stunned the footballing world in January when he announced his exit from Anfield out of the blue.
But Klopp had good reason to make the decision so soon in the season, at which point his Reds side were still competing on all four fronts before their quadruple hopes faded. The Telegraph claimed as well as his admission he’s “running out of energy”, he was waiting for them to get back in contention for silverware until leaving.
Liverpool finished last season trophy-less and fifth in the Premier League. But their electric start to this campaign allieviated his fears about the need for a major rebuild and reassured him he could leave with the club in a good position, making sure they could plan for the future with plenty of time in hand.
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He addressed that in his emotional leaving video when he said: "Last season was kind of a super-difficult season and there were moments when at other clubs probably the decision would have been, 'come on, thank you very much for everything but probably we should split here, or end it here'. That didn't happen here, obviously.
"For me it was super, super, super-important that I can help to bring this team back onto the rails. It was all I was thinking about. When I realised pretty early that happened, it's a really good team with massive potential and a super age group, super characters and all that, then I could start thinking about myself again and that was the outcome. It is not what I want to [do], it is just what I think is 100% right."
The acquisitions of Wataru Endo, Alexis Mac Aliister and Dominik Szoboszlai, all of whom have been successful signings, helped solve the midfield crisis Klopp was faced with 12 months ago with Fabinho, Jordan Henderson, James Milner and Naby Keita needing replacing.
It’s an issue Slot now doesn’t need to worry about, with Ryan Gravenberch also bolstering his options in the middle of the park. However, there’ll still be work to do for the Dutchman this summer.
The exits of Thiago and Joel Matip, both leaving as free agents, will need addressing. And there could be a massive hole to fill should the Reds hierarchy opt to cash in on Mohamed Salah before he enters the final year of his contract, with the Saudi Pro League expected to reignite their interest in the Egyptian.