A bombshell move despite his agent's denial? Jürgen Klopp is reportedly in talks about a new job after all

Just a week ago, Klopp's agent, Marc Kosicke, dismissed rumours of a move to the Saudi club, stating, "That's out of the question." According to Tavolieri, though, talks resumed on Sunday.

According to this source, Al-Ittihad wants to appoint the 58-year-old as technical director, putting him in charge of the club's transfer strategy. Klopp has stipulated that he will not leave his role at Red Bull until after the season starts or the transfer window shuts.

Unlike in most European leagues, the Saudi transfer window opens several weeks later and stays open longer: the Bundesliga window runs from 30 June to 1 September, whereas the Middle East window only opens on 22 July.

Klopp, who represents the soft-drink manufacturer not only with regard to RB Leipzig and Salzburg but also to clubs in Brazil, the USA and Japan, is under contract until 2029. Nevertheless, speculation about an early departure—or even a return to management—has been rife for some time. Real Madrid have been frequently linked with the German, and the defeated presidential candidate Enrique Riquelme even promised supporters he would pursue Klopp if elected. The coach himself has repeatedly insisted that he has no immediate plans to return to the touchline.

Yet rumours of internal disagreements surfaced as recently as March, with L'Equipe citing several points of contention between the club and the former successful manager of BVB and Liverpool FC.

These included the appointment of Leipzig coach Ole Werner, who at the time risked missing out on Champions League qualification again. Friction also surfaced at Paris FC, where Red Bull owns more than a 10% stake: Klopp's remit is reportedly so vague that he had no say in the club's spring managerial search, leading to the appointment of Antoine Kombouaré, an outsider to Klopp's RB network.