Jurgen Klopp called out for 'naughty' Liverpool comments that 'didn't help' Arne Slot

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Phil Thompson has weighed in on Jurgen Klopp's unexpected revelation that he might one day come back to manage Liverpool . The German coach left Anfield at the end of the 2023/24 season, closing the curtain on a nine-year spell that included both a Premier League and Champions League triumph.

Following six months away from the game, the 58-year-old made a return in January 2025, although not in the dugout, after taking on the position of head of global soccer at Red Bull . In several interviews since leaving Liverpool, Klopp has repeatedly stressed that he does not feel any longing for day-to-day coaching duties.

That said, while appearing on The Diary of a CEO podcast , Klopp acknowledged that a future return to the Liverpool hot seat cannot be completely ruled out.

He said: "I said I will never coach a different team in England. So that means if [Klopp returns] it's Liverpool. So yeah, theoretically it's possible. I love what I do right now, I don't miss coaching. I don't. I mean I do coach, just different, not players.

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"And I don't miss it. I don't miss standing in the rain two-and-a-half, three hours. I don't miss going to press conference three times a week, having 10-12 interviews a week. I don't miss that. I don't miss being in the dressing room in the sense that I don't have it often enough, I coached 1,080 something games."

He added: "So, I was in the dressing room very, very often. I'm 58, that's from your perspective, old from the other side, it's not that old. That means I could make the decision in a few years. I don't know.

"[If] I had to make the decision today, I won't coach again but thank God I don't have to do that. I can just see what the future brings."

Klopp's comments were later discussed by Thompson and Sam Allardyce on the most recent episode of the No Tippy Tappy Football podcast , where the former questioned the wisdom of making such remarks public.

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"I thought that was naughty and that was a couple of weeks ago," ex-Liverpool captain Thompson said. "I thought him being asked the question like that didn't help Arne [Slot] who was then under a lot of pressure.

"[His comments] came three or four games into the [unbeaten] run and I thought 'why have you said that Jurgen'. It got a lot of traction and I was going 'no', we've been there and you hear that thing when you're in there. I'm not saying it won't happen and it's not right."

Liverpool are currently on a 10-match unbeaten stream in the Premier League. Even so, a series of unconvincing displays during that run has kept the pressure ramped up on manager Arne Slot , particularly after Xabi Alonso - who was linked with a move to Liverpool in 2024 - left Real Madrid last week.

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Slot was questioned about speculation linking Alonso with a possible Anfield return. In response, the Dutch coach offered a tongue-in-cheek reply: "Yes he called me and said: 'What do you think about the team because I am going to take over in six months, can you tell me a little bit more?'

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