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Three hundred and forty one days after he announced that he would be leaving Liverpool and 226 days after confirming that Arne Slot would be the man to replace him in the Anfield dugout, Jurgen Klopp today begins his next job.
The German was never retiring — just taking a break — and after spending time watching Taylor Swift, playing padel, skiing, and enjoying his luxury mansion in Majorca, Klopp is rejuvenated enough to start his next task. Officially, January 1 is the first day of his new role with the Red Bull group, where he becomes head of global soccer.
It’s a big title, though it isn’t quite known yet exactly the extent to which Klopp will be working. Will this be closer to an ambassadorial role, where his face is used to further the Red Bull brand, or will be properly getting his hands dirty? We will perhaps know more when he holds a press conference in the middle of the month.
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The task at hand will be a tricky one from a reputational standpoint. Borussia Dortmund fans are far from impressed that Klopp has taken on a job with a company whose soccer morals it opposes and that is a feeling that is spread wider across Germany.
“You cannot make your decision depending on what reactions there will be,” he said of the criticism. “I did not want to step on anyone’s toes. I love all my former clubs, but I don’t know what I could have done so that everyone is happy.
“I am 57 and can still work a few more years, but I did not see myself on the sidelines for now. It was clear for me that I would do something — so then Red Bull came.”
Formerly a coach at Dortmund, Klopp is simply an admirer of the soccer values that the Red Bull group has installed. At Liverpool, he worked with several players including Sadio Mane who came through that system, and he always had a strong working admiration for how the energy drinks manufacturer pioneered the multi-club model.
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Taking it to the next level, though, is likely where Klopp comes in. He has worked at the very elite level of the game and while RB Leipzig has reached the latter stages of the Champions League, it is yet to property challenge for the Bundesliga. The idea will that Klopp’s expertise can unlock the next level.
Red Bull Salzburg, meanwhile, is struggling again having had a poor season last year. Klopp’s old assistant at Liverpool, Pep Lijnders, was fired last month with his side fifth in the Austrian top flight. The move didn’t work out for the 41-year-old even though the coach took Stefan Bajcetic (on loan) and Bobby Clark (permanently) with him.
Apart from Leipzig and Salzburg, the Red Bull soccer umbrella includes New York Red Bulls, Red Bull Bragantino. Red Bull Brasil, J-League side Omiya Ardija as well as shares in England’s Leeds United and French side Paris FC. Klopp, presumably, will have some level of influence across each, though the style and way that each plays is already well established.
And while improving the ceiling for the clubs in Europe, Red Bull also wants to make even more links between its clubs. The pathway from Salzburg to Leipzig is well-trodden, but less so from outside of Europe to in. Klopp might be able to help make the best individual players in MLS or Brazil, say, be capable of taking the step to Germany.
There is plenty for Klopp to be getting on with, then. While the move to join the Red Bull group was controversial, it is not hard to see the appeal. Nearly a year on from dropping the Liverpool exit bombshell, the German is ready to step back into soccer.