Who writes letters anymore?
Kevin Grosskreutz that’s who.
And in a turn of events we can’t ever remember seeing before, the Borussia Dortumd man has somehow penned an open letter to Liverpool fans today describing life under Jurgen Klopp ahead of the German’s first ever game in charge of Liverpool
The midfielder was born in Dortmund and worked under Klopp as he brought league and cup success to his home club.
Writing in today’s Daily Mail the player has just one key warning for Liverpool’s players-be careful of Jurgen klopp’s big hands and even bigger slaps,
“Jurgen Klopp may bump heads with his players on Saturday, he may even slap them but one message will be clear: it is not about you, it is about the team.”
“Klopp is an emotional guy. You have seen on television how he is on the touchline living every kick? Let me tell you he is equally animated in the dressing room. He is colourful, angry, emotional but he definitely has a plan. He has a clear strategy, he combines brains and guts.”
“Before every game, he made sure the atmosphere inside the dressing room was always highly charged. He would speak to each player individually, pumping them up, telling them what he wanted and then he would address us all as a group.”
The letter is a fantastic insight into Klopp’s approach and his ‘hands-on’ style with players. It’s reminds us a little bit of how we think Alex Ferguson or Roy Keane might deal with players in a dressing room,
“Lots of things went on with varying degrees of roughness; you could compare it maybe to what you see in American football or the rugby world cup, he’d bang heads with players, slap them. It was not in an overly aggressive way but in a way buddies would motivate each other.”
“He wanted to get inside our heads so that he knew we were going out to win. He wants everyone to put their body on the line and that will be his mantra: One for all and all for one. Any Liverpool individual who doesn’t buy into that will soon find himself out of the group.”
The Dortmund man also know that the final season with Klopp in charge was disappinting but that his view of the former Mainz coach is still as positive as ever
“We went through every emotion: laughing, crying, anger but I will never forget the experience of working with Klopp. What he taught me will define me as a player and person for the rest of my career. It was like a reality show at times. He is The Real One as well as The Normal One. I have written to him to wish him all the best of luck and he wrote back thanking me, saying he appreciated the message. On Saturday morning I’ll be ready to watch Tottenham against Liverpool and I’ll be cheering for him and for ‘the Reds’.”
“Our last season did not change our opinion of him as a coach or as a man. At the conclusion I have never witnessed such an outpouring of emotion for a manager. There were 85,000 people including the players, coaching staff and Klopp in tears. It was a sad time but one that showed what all of Dortmund thought of Klopp. He’s a great guy, that coached a great team in a great city and does so again. All the best to you, Jurgen and to Liverpool.”
If what he says is true, then we could be set for a very interesting few years ahead. Buckle up Liverpool fans.
