Former Republic of Ireland defender Mark Lawrenson said that Jurgen Klopp always had the right character to be Liverpool manager.
Speaking on Off The Ball, former Liverpool defender Lawrenson, said Klopp has an arrogance about him but is a great person at bringing people together and building character.
“There’s a little bit of arrogance in Klopp. I think it’s a Germanic thing. When we always played against German teams when I was a player, there was always a little bit of arrogance in them.
“The biggest thing about Klopp is he has a fabulous way to get everyone together. He has been great to the old players, like me. He would look at us and say to his own players, that’s the standards you have to get to.”
The former Irish European Cup winner recalls a story of when Klopp first arrived at Liverpool as manager and met one of Lawrenson’s friends in a pub.
“One day my friend Richard was taking his dog on a walk and stopped in the pub on his way home for a quick pint. Richard saw this figure alongside him. It turned out it was Klopp.
Richard said to him, ‘Do you like it here?’ To which Klopp replied, ‘Like it? What’s not to like it’s £9.99 for all you can eat.’ The man is probably on £10 million a year. I found that amazing.”
Lawrenson said without disrespecting any past players, it’s the players that never quite win the leagues are the players that unfortunately just weren’t good enough.
He looks at this current Liverpool team as a team that rely on each other.
“I think there is a little something with teams that are always good but don’t quite win it. I just think those players weren’t quite good enough.
"It’s not anything to do with hunger, it's just this team have got something where they trust each other. Even when they play poorly, they manage to win games.”
Lawrenson speaks of this Liverpool teaming training the way they play and never giving in.
“The majority of their performances this season they were outstanding. They will not change the way they play. I think it took Klopp a while to manage this ‘press style’ but they got it.
“If you see the way they train, he trains them like dogs. There’s no let-up. Everything you see in the game; he does in training. He hammers it home to everyone. There are no grey areas with Klopp."
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.
