Jurgen Klopp "not afraid" of being sacked by Liverpool

By Ben Knapton, Senior Reporter | 03 April 2023

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp insists that he is not fearful of being sacked by the Reds after Brendan Rodgers and Graham Potter lost their jobs on Sunday.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has insisted that he does fear the sack in the wake of several high-profile managerial casualties in the Premier League and abroad.

Within the space of several hours on Sunday, both Brendan Rodgers and Graham Potter lost their jobs at Leicester City and Chelsea respectively, with the former leaving by "mutual agreement" while Potter was given the boot.

Potter became the 13th Premier League coach to leave his role in the current campaign, with Tottenham Hotspur also parting ways with Antonio Conte during the international break.

Just before Conte's exit from North London, Bayern Munich surprisingly axed Julian Nagelsmann from his position, replacing the 35-year-old with Thomas Tuchel during an unprecedented period of managerial shake-ups.

Liverpool's downturn in fortunes during the 2022-23 season has led to the suggestion that Klopp could be relieved of his duties as well, in spite of the fact that Liverpool tied the German down to a new contract until 2026 last year.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp on March 15, 2023 © Reuters

Ahead of Tuesday's game with Chelsea - who have placed Bruno Saltor in interim charge - Klopp admitted that the Reds' owners may have viewed his situation differently if it was his first year at the helm, but he is not fearful of being given the boot.

"I'm not afraid [of the sack], no. There's no need for being afraid, I need to deliver. I am not here as a mural on house walls, I am here to deliver," Klopp said during his pre-game press conference.

"I'm aware of the fact that I am sitting here because of the past, not because of what we did this season. We have smart owners - they know about the situation. If this was my first season, it would be slightly different.

"I am fully in [to Liverpool] - but we have to sort this. We cannot just continue playing how we do from time to time. I am really disappointed about us that we do this but it happens. We have to find a way out.

"The elephant in the room is probably why I am still sitting here, in this crazy world! Last man standing! Things can go the wrong way, things can change - we all accept that as part of the business. It's a strange week, Conte, Nagelsmann, and now these two."

Klopp oversaw a turgid 4-1 defeat to Manchester City in Saturday's lunchtime affair, marking Liverpool's third beating on the bounce following losses to Real Madrid and Bournemouth before the international break.

Liverpool's Fabinho, Harvey Elliott, Mohamed Salah and Jordan Henderson react on April 1, 2023 © Reuters

Liverpool were without the injured quintet of Stefan Bajcetic (adductor), Calvin Ramsay (knee), Luis Diaz (knee), Thiago Alcantara (hip) and Naby Keita (muscle) for that game, and all five are set to miss the trip to Stamford Bridge too.

However, Klopp has promised that changes will be in order, with the likes of Roberto Firmino, Darwin Nunez and Kostas Tsimikas vying to return to the first XI.

"We give the boys as much time as possible to recover but there will be changes, definitely. In this moment I have no clue who I can line up," Klopp added.

Elaborating on Diaz and Thiago's recoveries, Klopp said of the former: "He is not ready for this game. We still have to give him time. As much as we want him to be back, we still have to give him time.

"I wouldn't say Arsenal is totally out of the question but it looks unlikely. Thiago, we'll see how he reacts. He is not available for tomorrow."

Defeat at the Etihad Stadium saw Liverpool plummet to eighth in the Premier League standings behind Brighton & Hove Albion and Brentford, and the gap to the top four could increase to 10 points if Tottenham Hotspur get the better of Everton on Monday night.