Jurgen Klopp explains decision to leave Liverpool: ‘I am running out of energy’

The Reds manager will step down at the end of the season after nearly nine years at the club

Jurgen Klopp has explained why he has made the shock decision to leave Liverpool this season.

The German, 56, announced the stunning news on Friday morning after nearly nine trophy-laden years at Anfield.

Klopp, who took over from Brendan Rodgers, in October 2015, has won every club trophy possible during his time at Liverpool – but will stand down in the summer and explained his decision to supporters in a 25-minute interview on the club website.

“It is that I am, how can I say it, running out of energy,” he said.

“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. That’s it, pretty much.”

Klopp opened his trophy spree at Anfield in 2019 with the club’s sixth Champions League triumph in Madrid. A first league title in 30 years followed a year later, before FA Cup and League Cup success in 2022 as the Reds went close to completing a famous quadruple.

Klopp added that he told the owners in November of his decision and added he is keen to keep matters “business as usual” as Liverpool target another title success this year. Liverpool are five points clear at the top of the Premier League table.

Jurgen Klopp will leave Liverpool at the end of the season (Getty Images)

Elaborating on his first answer, Klopp said: “I am OK. I am healthy, as much as you can [be] at my age. Little bits and bobs, stuff like that, but nothing anybody has to be concerned about, so that’s absolutely fine.

“I told the club already in November. I have to explain a little bit that maybe the job I do people see from the outside, I’m on the touchline and in training sessions and stuff like this, but the majority of all the things happen around these kind of things.

“That means a season starts and you plan pretty much the next season already. When we sat there together talking about potential signings, the next summer camp and can we go wherever, the thought came up, ‘I am not sure I am here then anymore’ and I was surprised myself by that.

“I obviously start thinking about it. It didn’t start [then], but of course 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 per cent right. That’s it.”

Klopp finished his interview with a plea to fans: to accept his decision with four months of the season to go.

Klopp won the 2019 Champions League with Liverpool - his first trophy at the club (Getty Images)

The German led the Reds to their first league title for 30 years in 2020 (Getty Images)

“The message to supporters: I really would like you to accept the decision,” he added.

“That would be nice. And then if I can ask for one more thing, after telling you don’t sing my song too early, after telling you be loud in the stadium, stuff like this, if I could ask you for one more thing it would be: don’t make these games about me, because there’s no need.

“The only thing I always wanted was the full support for the team, it’s not for me. I know about our relationship, I don’t need any kind of proof.

“We will have a moment, maybe the last matchday here or somewhere else – I mean in other countries or other competitions. There’s enough time to do these kinds of things. Let’s now really go for it. The outside world want to use this decision, laugh about it, want to disturb us. We are Liverpool, we went through harder things together. And you went through harder things before me.

“Let’s make a strength of it. That would be really cool. Let’s squeeze everything out of this season and have another thing to smile about when we look back in the future. Thank you.”

Klopp will speak in his usual pre-match press conference, ahead of Liverpool’s FA Cup fourth-round clash against Norwich on Sunday, at 3pm (GMT) on Friday.