As the PA news agency’s Liverpool correspondent for more than a decade I’ve had the privilege of seeing the Jurgen Klopp era close up. Three Champions League finals (and one victory) in five years, a first league title in 30, too many top one-liners to count, a few admonishments from the man himself for a line of questioning he thought obvious or facile but also frequent comedic exchanges have meant there has never been a dull moment. He will be missed when he’s gone.
Seismic. There is no other word for Jurgen Klopp’s decision to leave Liverpool.
Everyone knew this day would come – his contract was for another two years but he had already stayed longer than any of his previous jobs and showed no huge appetite to extend again – but it lands so hard in this, of all seasons, with emerging talk of another another potential quadruple bid.
For fans – and the players – it is heart-wrenching. Even rival clubs may be sad to see the charismatic German leave.
From the moment he walked through the doors of the press conference room in Anfield’s Sir Kenny Dalglish stand in October 2015 and charmed the world by announcing himself as “the normal one” before pledging to win a title in the first four years of his reign (he was one year out as it came in 2020) Klopp’s impact has been immense.
Perhaps only Bill Shankly and Dalglish can claim to enjoy as much adoration as the 56-year-old. For a generation of fans who missed the heydays of the 1970s and 1980s he is the undisputed hero, the man who built a new Anfield bastion and not only won a sixth European Cup but finally brought home that long-awaited 19th league title.
Of course, Klopp is perfectly capable of rubbing people up the wrong way with his outspoken views on various topics or staunch defence of the club but at least you know when he says what he says it is genuine and not some phoney psychological ploy, even if he is not always perceived to be in the right.
He does not suffer fools and sees through attempts to use him as a means to generate headlines. Ask him a facile question or one which has a glaringly obvious answer – and I have plenty of experience of this – and be prepared to face a testy response. Not in a nasty, demeaning way. He just cuts through the nonsense (Klopp would use an expletive here).
But he is always genuine, warm, likeable and carries an aura before him that only a few in the game do. He also has a God-given talent for saying the right thing at the right time, whether it be talking about the sensitive subject of Hillsborough or in a post-match interview.
His video message for the ‘This Means More’ campaign in April 2018 was played on the big screen before the Champions League final against Real Madrid a few weeks later in Kiev.
The packed stadium quietened down to listen. At the end of his two-minute speech even I felt I could go out on the pitch and put in a shift for him. Klopp’s ability to elevate people beyond their perceived limitations is one of the things which makes him great.
It is why he is loved by his players, adored by fans and, let’s be honest, even begrudgingly admired by rival supporters (perhaps excluding those of City, United and Chelsea) for his forthright approach to the game and life in general.
However, his high-energy football is not only draining for his squad, the intensity of gearing up for a fight seemingly every three days eventually takes its toll and many observers were surprised he made it past the seven-year itch stage which ended his tenure at Mainz and Borussia Dortmund.
He looked physically and mentally shot during last season’s struggle to fifth place but insisted he had returned re-energised and refreshed and he has certainly transmitted that to his team as they currently top the Premier League, having reached one final and still competing in two other cups.
But even the great Jurgen Klopp has to succumb at some point and that point is now.
One thing is for sure, he will – to use one of his favourite sayings – “go for it and give it 100 per cent” for the remainder of what will be a landmark season and the Kop will sing their “I’m so glad that that Jurgen is a Red” song with more emotion than ever before.
It’s could be one hell of a send-off.
Bayern star Kane scores 400th senior goal
Harry Kane surpassed the 400-goal mark for his senior career as his double helped Bayern Munich beat Eintracht Frankfurt 2-1 at the Allianz Arena on Saturday.
Kane moved within one of the milestone as he put Bayern 1-0 up after just nine minutes, coolly finishing from close range after Konrad Laimer's pass had set him up.
Then, after Frankfurt levelled through Hugo Ekitike, Kane slotted home a penalty with typical aplomb following a foul on Thomas Muller to move himself onto 400 career goals and ultimately lead Bayern to victory.
Kane scored 280 of his goals in 435 appearances for Tottenham, overtaking Jimmy Greaves to become the club's all-time leading scorer when he netted for the 267th time in Spurs colours against Manchester City last February.
His tally of 213 Premier League goals, meanwhile, puts him just 47 behind the competition's all-time leader Alan Shearer, who scored 260 times for Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United.
Kane is also the most prolific player in England's history, his 62 goals for the Three Lions coming in 89 international appearances.
He memorably missed the chance to surpass Wayne Rooney's previous record of 53 when he blazed a penalty over the crossbar in the Three Lions' quarter-final defeat to France at the 2022 World Cup, only to clinch his place in history in a Euro 2024 qualifier against Italy three months later.
The very first goal of Kane's senior career came in League One during a loan spell with Leyton Orient as they thrashed Sheffield Wednesday 4-0 in January 2011.
That was the first of five goals Kane scored in O's colours, while he also netted nine times in a loan spell with Millwall in 2011-12 and twice during a stint with Leicester City the following season.
Las Palmas 0-2 Girona: Michel's men close in on Champions League dream
It was a tale of three penalties as Girona went second in LaLiga with a 2-0 win over Las Palmas on Saturday, edging closer to a Champions League place for next season.
Artem Dovbyk made sure of the win from the spot in the second half, after David Lopez had put them in front in the 26th minute.
Lopez was on hand to blast into the roof of the net after Alvaro Valles saved Dovbyk's first penalty of the game, conceded by Las Palmas captain Kirian Rodriguez.
Las Palmas had earlier squandered a spot-kick of their own, with Paulo Gazzaniga springing to his right to push Sandro Ramirez's strike away.
Girona now possess a 13-point buffer to fifth-placed Athletic Bilbao, who have just 18 points to play for, so it appears a mere matter of time before Michel's side secure Champions League qualification.
Data Debrief: Dovbyk in fine company
Dovbyk wasn't deterred after seeing his first-half penalty saved, his second attempt from 12 yards finding the bottom-right corner to make the points safe for Girona.
He has now scored 19 goals in just 31 appearances in LaLiga. Only four players have previously reached that figure in fewer outings in the competition – Cristiano Ronaldo (23), Radamel Falcao (24), Robert Lewandowski (28) and Julio Baptista (29).
Derby seal Championship return with Carlisle win as Cheltenham drop to League Two
Derby County sealed a Championship return by beating already-relegated Carlisle United 2-0 at Pride Park on the final day of the League One season.
Derby knew a single point would end their two-year stay in the third tier of English football, with Bolton Wanderers waiting to pounce if the Rams did suffer a shock defeat.
However, such a slip-up never looked likely as Max Bird's powerful strike from outside the area put them ahead within five minutes, and James Collins added a close-range second on the hour mark to make certain of promotion.
Paul Warne's team finished five points behind Portsmouth, who clinched the title earlier this month, and five clear of Bolton – who needed a late equaliser from Cameron Jerome to draw 3-3 with Peterborough.
Bolton will face Barnsley in the play-offs as the Tykes were not punished for their 1-1 draw with Northampton Town, defeats for Blackpool and Lincoln City denying them the chance to gatecrash the top six.
Fourth-placed Peterborough will face Oxford United in the other play-off semi-final, as the U's clinched a 2-1 win over Exeter City to claim fifth place in the final reckoning.
Three of the four relegation places had already been decided before Saturday's matches, with Carlisle, Port Vale, and Fleetwood Town on their way to League Two.
Cheltenham will join them after Nick Freeman struck a 90th-minute winner in their 2-1 loss at Stevenage. Darrell Clarke's side needed a win to save themselves and send Burton Albion down in their place, but they were hit with a late sucker punch as their three-year stay in League One came to an end.
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