Juergen Klopp’s surprising decision that this year will be his last season as Liverpool coach is difficult for the Reds players to accept. However, on the other hand, this will spur the Liverpool squad to be even better in the remainder of this season. That was the assessment of the captain, Virgil van Dijk, Saturday (27/1/2024).
Klopp has been in charge at Anfield since 2015 and led Liverpool to win the Premier League, their first in 30 years, by beating Manchester City in a race to win the league title in 2020. The German coach recently announced that he would leave Liverpool at the end of the 2023-2024 season. One reason is because of running out of energy.
“This is difficult to accept because the coach (Klopp) means a lot to us, to me, to the club, to the whole Premier League, I think,” said Van Dijk on Liverpool’s official website. “But he made the decision for himself and his family. It was always going to be a difficult decision and that’s exactly what happened.”
Klopp said everything would continue as usual at the club, with Liverpool still chasing trophies in four competitions, topping the Premier League, the League Cup final and still involved in the Europa League and FA Cup. Van Dijk also supports this. “We still have a lot of targets to achieve this year and why not finish the season well and also celebrate for Klopp,” said Van Dijk.
“Of course this is very big, this is big news in football,” said the Dutchman. “It might even give you an extra boost or maybe enjoy it more together and make the last part of the season, the manager’s time at the club, the best time he’s ever had,” he said.
As captain, Van Dijk will try to ensure his squad remains focused this season. “For me personally, my mindset is to ensure that the goals and targets we want to achieve are not disturbed by the news,” he said. “That’s what the manager wants too. We want to achieve a lot and continue the performance we have, with the way we play, with the players who perform very well and maintain that confidence,” he said.
Liverpool will host Norwich City in the fourth round of the FA Cup on Sunday (28/1/2024) before welcoming Chelsea in the Premier League, Wednesday (31/1/2024). “We are ready for the FA Cup this weekend and it will be a tough and big game. Let’s go there and enjoy it all,” he said. “Let’s make the rest of this season special so he can get the farewell he deserves,” said Van Dijk.
