17-year-old coach Jurgen Klopp, who has won not only one important match or title, is rightfully considered one of the best football coaches in the world. In 2015, the German joined the "Liverpool" club, where he is trying to implement not only his acceptable playing philosophy, but also to create an atmosphere that allowed him to succeed at "Mainz" and "Borussia" teams. Here is an article by Goal portal reviewer Raphael Honigstein, in which the German coach himself shared his unique football philosophy from Germany. "Liverpool" coach Jurgen Klopp still regrets one moment that has not returned to his life. He wonders how he would have felt at that time. He imagines what expression would have been on his son's face at that time. All this because the German missed his son's first day of school: at that time, instead of being in an unusual attacker-defender role, the footballer had to participate in a "Mainz" team training session. Despite the fact that J. Klopp still regrets this day, as he does for any other unsuccessful episode in his life, he tries to learn the lesson and improve. Therefore, when after a decade J. Klopp was already the coach of this team, he without any doubt let his student Fabian Gerber attend his mother's birthday party, although at that time in Germany, coaches almost always forced footballers to adhere to strict discipline and players could not even think about such entertainment during the season. Nevertheless, J. Klopp was different from the very start of his coaching career and did everything in a way that was acceptable to him, and an important part of that was making everyone in the club feel comfortable and at ease. He wants club members not to be restrained and not always try to please the coach. This is one of the most important principles of the German's work as a coach. "The everyday business part in football is not pleasant for the players," admitted the 50-year-old coach, who agreed to give an exclusive interview to Goal portal. "If you feel like a person who is liked only when he does his job perfectly - you won't feel good. That's why I try to make my students independent of outside criticism. Criticism is important, but its tendencies are such that it is either too negative or too positive. When you score three times, everyone says, 'Fantastic! How do you feel?' and so on. No one cares about the guy who made the pass or scored the goal. As a coach, I know that player won't score three goals in the next games. You just have to come to terms with that. That's why it's very important part of my work with the team to help them become independent and confident individuals," reveals the German. Throughout his 17-year career, J. Klopp realized that blocking harsh, unpleasant comments or compliments is essential. During his years leading teams, he not only enjoyed success: he achieved an historic place in the Bundesliga with "Mainz" or two consecutive championship titles with "Borussia", but also experienced difficult moments, of which the 2014-2015 season stood out the most, when during the winter break his team fell into the relegation zone. Despite admitting that those years were incredibly difficult, the strategist never changed his working methods. "Those were terrible years. Nevertheless, at that time I said: 'I don't think I made many mistakes'. And people had an answer: 'Now he really lost his mind'. I also said that at that time I was a better coach than three years before. No one wanted to listen to me, but that's not so important. We were confident that if we continued to do everything right and remained a real team, eventually everything would start working again," recalls the coach about memories of a tough season. "Borussia" finished the season successfully and eventually took seventh place in the German championship, which was enough to qualify for the Europa League. Unwavering confidence from J. Klopp was eventually confirmed by facts: several months after the end of the season, the statistical department of the "Liverpool" club presented him with numbers which confirmed that the Dortmund club had a 'most bizarre season of all time', especially felt in the first half of the season. Their club ranked second in chances created in the league and also ranked second in opposition-created chances, but "Borussia" did not take advantage of their opportunities, as the opponents almost converted all of them into goals, leading to such poor results for the team. "There were no doubts. You always have to ask questions, but you shouldn't doubt what you're doing. We also ask questions when we win. I don't expect perfection from my players and myself, but it's normal to have questions. Even after victories, we immediately ask ourselves: how should we start the next game, how to maintain our form and so on. I don't consider these doubts. I have never had a thought in my life: 'After all, what could I tell them now?'. You can always find explanations and answers," the convinced J. Klopp admits. Such a strong coach's attitude came from an unexpected source. As a teenager, J. Klopp enjoyed reading 'Mort and Phil' - comic stories about two secret agents who experienced brutal accidents that seriously injured them, but only for that moment, as in the next part of the story they were completely healthy again. "The short time these characters needed to recover equaled genius. No matter if you were shot in the air, run over or fell from an 800-meter hill - eventually everything continued. In other words: there are always other matches where you can do everything right," the German said back in 2005. However, the job of a coach is hard and positive emotions in it can quickly turn into negatives. Does the coach have to pretend in that case? "I never pretend," reveals the coach, who cited an example when one day he suddenly became the team's strategist from a player. "I remember telling the players that it was the best 'Mainz' team I had played in and it would have been very difficult for me to get into the team as a player. I was convinced of their football mastery, so I didn't have to pretend. I just told them what I sincerely believed and in the end they started to believe in me," remembers the coach. When J. Klopp became the coach of "Mainz", this team fought for survival in the second Bundesliga. After the German implemented the zonal defense system of his teacher, former "Mainz" coach Wolfgang Frank, the team not only avoided relegation, but was also close to promotion to the top league. The team reached the Bundesliga on the third attempt, and the young coach achieved an historical achievement for this club. "I realized that as a coach I had no experience, but I was so excited to start this job that I never once thought I could be fired. Only after a few years did I realize that if 'Mainz' had fired me, no one would have given me a second chance in the coaching position. Looking back on this now, I think it was a somewhat suicidal mission," Klopp believes. Listening to Klopp talk about football now, it is hard to imagine that there were times when the German did not enjoy this game at all. Playing in the talent-lacking "Mainz" team, he was a low-paid player in a striker-defender position in the second German league. According to the 50-year-old strategist himself, at that time football was just an opportunity for him to fight for survival. "I had no other job. I had to deal with the pressure and also come to terms with my inner battles because I lacked football skills," he said. Starting his football career in his small town youth team "TSV Glatten", J. Klopp quickly realized how hard the life of a professional footballer was. "I went to Frankfurt's 'Eintracht' tryout and looked around: 'Wow, they're good'. Then I saw Andy Moller - a player of the same age as me, who was 19 years old too. Looking at him, I thought: 'If this is football - I play a completely different game'. He was a world-class player. And me? I was no class at all," remembered the German the beginning of his football career. J. Klopp reveals his true calling only when he switched from boots to tactics board and created what Germans call Gesamtkunstwerk: a fiery combination where attacking football, which leaves no one indifferent, the special bond in the team's locker room, and the fans who support the team with all their hearts shine. We saw all this in the "Mainz" club, later all this was repeated in the "Borussia" team, and now this process is taking place in the "Liverpool" team. "Creating a situation where everyone feels important, enjoys what they do, knows their job, feels respected and needed - that's what life should be about. That's how you should remember your time in the football club. I understand that there are many different feelings in life: good and bad. However, when I think about the good ones - I feel shivers run down my spine. It's really fantastic. Maybe it's some kind of life skill. However, if others feel the same way, then we are all on this great journey together and later looking back on it, we can remember it with nothing but smiles on our faces. That's why you must give everyone the opportunity to be part of this project. It's easy for me, because I understand that fans are very important. Maybe other people look at these things differently and sometimes forget about the fans, but I never forget the people who are important to us. It is very easy for me to respect them, which they deserve," he concludes.
