Jurgen Klopp has revealed his excitement towards Liverpool’s future without him as he prepares to bid farewell to the Reds on Sunday.
Klopp’s nine-year association with Liverpool will come to an end after Liverpool’s meeting with Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday, before which the boss penned an emotional letter to fans to look back on the past and ahead to the future.
“Of course, this is my final game as Liverpool manager,” Klopp wrote in his final programme notes. “This is something you have all known for a few months and I have known for a little longer but as much as I know it is the right time for me to leave I know also that it will take some getting used to. If the starting point was the announcement, the next big step into the future is Sunday.
“If space allowed I could write name after name of people who I need to thank but there has never been a match programme of this size, so I will have to be more general. I could not be more appreciative of the players past and present who have served this club in the nine years that I have been here.
“What they have achieved in that time is special, not just in terms of the moments they have created and the success they have had, but also in the way they have underlined what it is to represent LFC.”
After paying tribute to the players and staff who will also depart at the end of the season, Klopp insisted he is looking forward to seeing what life under new boss Arne Slot will look like.
“The big positive for Liverpool is that no matter who is leaving, the club is still in a very, very good place,” he continued. “This season we aimed for the moon and ended up in the stars which is never too bad and the players and staff who are remaining are top, top class.
“Yes, they will have new leadership before too long but this is a club that is ready to take the journey in a new and exciting direction, not one that is ready for the journey to come to an end.
“This is what I have always known Liverpool to be – a club of journeys and adventures, some that end with trophies and some that don’t but whatever happens there are always stories and moments that are unforgettable.
“In my time here we have been blessed with quite a few and it is important that I stress that what we have done has always been underpinned by stable, intelligent and creative ownership. Again, I could not be more grateful for this but I am also excited because I know that this will continue going forward and that can only be good news for Liverpool FC.
“Finally, to the supporters I have only thanks and love. Everything that we have done has been because of you, with you and for you. I have referred many times to the banner on the Kop which says Unity Is Strength and I think this is a belief that we have all lived up to.
“The important thing now is that it continues so that my successor can have the same benefits of it as I’ve had. After Sunday I will be a supporter too, so hopefully I can play my part in that.
“I have never walked alone. You will never walk alone. LFC will never walk alone.”