'It's possible' - Jurgen Klopp dramatically opens the door to Liverpool return, but legendary manager insists he 'doesn't miss coaching'

Klopp brought a nine-year stint as Reds manager to a close in the summer of 2024. He had turned Liverpool into perennial contenders for the biggest of domestic and continental honours by that stage, with the reins being passed on to Arne Slot. The 58-year-old cited fatigue as being one of the main reasons why he walked away from the dugout.

Klopp is adamant that he does not miss the daily stresses of life as an elite tactician, with his passion for the game having ensured that every ounce of energy was invested in roles with Mainz, Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool.

He may, however, catch the coaching bug again. Klopp would never agree to take charge of another Premier League side, given his strong emotional and professional ties to the reigning champions of England, but concedes that a stunning retracing of steps to Merseyside is not entirely out of the question.

Quizzed by the Diary of CEO podcast on what his future looks like, Klopp said: “I said I will never coach a team in England again, that means if it's Liverpool, theoretically it's possible. I don't know exactly, I love what I do right now. I don't miss coaching, I do coach now but just different.

“I don't miss standing in the rain, two-and-a-half [to] three hours, I don't miss going to press conferences three times a week, having 12 interviews a week, I don't miss that, I don't. I don't miss being in the dressing room, I coached something like 1,080 games so I was in a dressing room often. I don't want to die in a dressing room because it's not nice, it smells.

“There might be something, I'm 58, I could make the decision in a few years... I don't know. Do I have to make the decision today that I will not coach again? Thank god I don't have to, I can just see what the future brings. Now I'm in a project I really love, I like doing what I'm doing right now. In my mind, only if I'm focused 100 per cent, I can do it really good."

Klopp told The Athletic in September 2025 when pressed on claims that he will never coach again: “That’s what I think. But you don’t know. I’m 58. If I started again at 65, everybody will say, ‘You said you’ll never do it again!’ Er, sorry, I thought 100 per cent (when I said it)! That is what I think now. I don’t miss anything.”

He added: “I missed nothing in my life because I never thought about it. So during almost 25 years, I twice went to a wedding — one of them was mine and the other one was two months ago. In 25 years, I have been four times at the cinema — all in the last eight weeks. It’s now nice to be able to do it. was in so many different countries as a coach and I saw nothing of them; just the hotel, the stadium or the training ground. Nothing else. I did not miss it, but I would now.”

Klopp jokingly said when discussing how committed he was to any given managerial post: “I know how almost all football managers live. They live for the job, all-in. You can’t be successful in this business without doing it like that. But then I tell Pep (Guardiola) - he improved his (golf) handicap with age! I didn’t have a f*cking minute of time to play golf! So that’s why he’s a genius and I am not. When do you play golf? I cannot believe that.”

There is no role for Klopp to fill at Anfield for now, with his successor - Dutch tactician Slot - having delivered the Premier League title last season. Liverpool are currently on a run of four successive defeats across all competitions but, having spent heavily in the summer transfer window, the expectation is that they will come good once new recruits are fully adjusted to the demands of life under the brightest of spotlights.