‘Honeymoon period of one game’ - Jurgen Klopp will not get special treatment as Germany boss after family warning & faces different challenge to Dortmund & Liverpool

At that point, after close to nine years on Merseyside, the Premier League and Champions League title winner decided that the time had come to take a break from the stresses of being a boss. A role was taken up with Red Bull as their Head of Global Football.

Klopp was linked with every major post that opened up across Europe and around the world - from Real Madrid to the Saudi Pro League - but maintained that he was happy overseeing matters behind the scenes.

The opportunity to move into an international post has, however, proved too good to turn down. Germany sent out an SOS call after suffering a last-32 defeat against Paraguay at the 2026 World Cup - with that loss proving to be the final straw for Julian Nagelsmann.

Klopp has agreed a four-year contract with the DFB, taking him through a European Championship cycle and another outing at FIFA’s flagship event in 2030. He has warned the media in his homeland that they need to leave his family alone in order for him to honour those terms.

Quizzed on whether Klopp will see the next World Cup, ex-Germany international Hamann - speaking in association with MrQ Casino - told GOAL: “He was talking about his family. I don't know why he brought his family into the mix here, because nobody's interested in his family.

“He will get judged by results. Myself and I think most others, or all the others will judge him like they would any other manager. He might get a bit of a honeymoon period of one game! That's about it, because at the end of the day, it's about results. If the results don't go well, if the football is not good, he will have to face the music. That's no different.

“I know what he said. I was surprised that no journalist asked another question after it, a follow-up question, what he really meant. But for me, it's clear that he will get judged and criticised when things are not going well, like everybody else.”

Klopp - who savoured Bundesliga title glory during his time in charge of Borussia Dortmund - has become famed for his man-management skills and ability to generate team unity. Those messages will be more difficult to get across when only working with players a few times a year.

Assessing Klopp’s credentials, Hamann added: “I think it's easier to form a relationship with the player when you see him every day. Even more so, it will be important to obviously watch the players and maybe meet them in private to let them know and to make them sure that you care about them.

“I think this appreciation of the manager to take time to watch games and maybe go for dinner with them after games in Milan, in Newcastle, in Frankfurt, in Dortmund, wherever, I think will be key.

“Because, as you say, it's very hard to form the relationship when you're in camp. Because, obviously, they changed the dates now for the international games. I think there's a two-and-a-half or three-week break now, mid-September.

“But then you've got 30 players there. So, it's almost impossible. You've got so many things going on. You've got press stuff to do. You've got a physio, a doctor with one or two players. So, you simply haven't got the time to speak to all of them in length.

“Even more so, I think it's important to make the time to do that when the season starts now in late August. It's not easy. It's never easy. But, obviously, it’s key for his success, I think, the relationship with the players. And that's obviously a little bit easier to do when you see them on a daily basis.”

Klopp will open his reign as Germany boss on September 24 when facing the Netherlands in UEFA Nations League competition. Four matches will be taken in during that break in domestic action, with Serbia and Greece (twice) also being tackled.

He will be under pressure to deliver an immediate upturn in fortune, as Die Mannschaft take aim at promotion back into Group A, while Euro 2028 qualification will get underway in March 2027 - with the draw for that campaign taking place in Belfast on December 6.