Every word from Jürgen Klopp’s final press conference as Liverpool manager

First-half goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Jarell Quansah ensured Klopp’s 491st and final game in charge ended with a 2-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers – the 305th win of his reign unforgettable and triumphant.

After delivering a farewell speech to his adoring Anfield crowd, the manager then spoke to the media for the final time.

See everything Klopp had to say below.

On how he feels about what he’s been through because it’s “not normal” for a manager to be sent off like that when he leaves a club…

No, I don’t think it’s normal. I’ve known for a long time already that our relationship is pretty special, I love that. I really think people have done something different for this club. As I said, these people are the superpower of this club, these people keep the club going, these people push the club, these people take the club through difficult times. These people are the club. So obviously we had a great time together, nine years, almost a decade. It was absolutely crazy. The kids who were in the stadium today, the kids of the staff who were in the stadium today and I saw after the game, they don’t know another Liverpool FC manager. That’s right – they just think I’ve always been there and I’ll always be there and now I’m gone.

I expected… I was a little afraid of a fall. We had one or two moments during the week where it wasn’t great and during the game the last few minutes were difficult but the overall feeling today was that it was more of a start than an end because I know bye is about me, but overall it’s about the team and I’ve seen a great team and I’ve seen a great team on the road. We have seen a team that is ahead of schedule in their development. It’s a tough league and you never know where you start again but we’ve only seen a good football team and we’ve seen all the young players who have saved our backs a few times this year and none of them apart from Conor (Bradley) and Jarell – Jarell played and Conor was on the bench and the others weren’t involved today/ They’re there too and that gave me the feeling, ‘OK, job done’.

I love you all, I love everything about the club, but it’s time to go. But look, it’s not burning behind me, and that makes me feel good. It’s not like you’re thinking, “Come on, get out of here!” So I know I can come back and I will come back and as I said after the game, from today, from three hours ago when the game finished, I’m a Liverpool supporter and I love that.

How has the last week affected you…

Everything affected me. It was fantastic. Like I said, the boys delivered. It’s hard to deal with things like that. I couldn’t use the exit from the AXA Training Center, I can’t go out there, I would still stand there and sign autographs. People show me so much love, it’s good. You can’t come to my house and stuff. It’s really hard to take. He is so positive and I wish he could be someone else and be his best friend. That would be great – my best friends get all this attention. But I get all the attention, that’s really hard to take, to be honest. I’m just trying to get through it and there will be a time when nobody asks me anymore, nobody looks at me anymore and I just go down for a few hours or days, I don’t know, we’ll see. But for now I have to function and I have to go on and do this.

But today was wonderful. I want to thank everyone. I like how we said goodbye to the staff, how the players said goodbye to the staff. To the public, it’s Jürgen Klopp, Jürgen Klopp, Jürgen Klopp, Jürgen Klopp. But Jürgen Klopp is Pep Lijnders, Jürgen Klopp is Peter Krawietz, Jürgen Klopp is Vitor Matos, Jürgen Klopp is John Achterberg, Jack Robinson, (Claudio) Taffarel, Jürgen Klopp is Andreas Kornmayer, Andreas Schlumberger. Jürgen Klopp is much more than Jürgen Klopp. I would have done absolutely nothing on my own. It’s really nice how people did that today because everyone felt really appreciated. I don’t have a lack of appreciation, obviously, everyone points to me in the first few moments and tells me they’re going to miss me. I’m glad all the other guys got their attention too.

It was an absolutely incredible and wonderful time. I like. My family was on the pitch, which was nice, really nice. Now we will have a party and then come back for another event. And I’ll come back occasionally, like I said, as a supporter now, and I’m fine with that, honestly. Maybe not for the first game of the season – that’s early, wow! Maybe after the second international break or something. What can I say? There must be a difference if things are going bad, always worse, worse, worse, or if things are going well and going. I’m very happy that we could have done it that way – that we did it that way. Third, it’s okay.

What will he do on his first day away from coaching Liverpool…

I have no idea. I probably pack, I think so, but I don’t know. I have enough things to do. (A) private life has to be planned and I haven’t planned anything yet because I’ve been here. Ulla will probably let me know where we’re going and stuff like that, but I’m happily following him. But I have no idea what’s next. I know we’re having a party tonight – that much I know.

About the future…

I don’t know exactly why no one thinks I probably won’t be a manager again, but I understand because obviously it seems like a drug, it seems like everyone is coming back and everyone is working until they’re 70. I always had the idea that I wouldn’t do this that long. Look, other people are smarter, other people can do it in different ways. I have to be all in, I have to be the spark, I have to be energy, I have to be all these things and I’m empty. This is. My biggest worry today was that John Achterberg kept coughing next to me and I thought I’d wake up tomorrow morning and be sick because he coughed in my direction. I have to start the rest now and then we’ll see. But not now I already feel and (think) maybe the next opportunity. You just have to look outside of what clubs are obviously available and stuff like that. There will be opportunities, but I’m not sitting here thinking, ‘Maybe in a year I’ll take this.’ Right now, see you later.