Jurgen Klopp is not the best option for Real Madrid — the German is a ticking time bomb
Yet if you think in Madrid terms, their stars should be led by the biggest star on the touchline. Without doubt, among out‑of‑work coaches that is the German Jurgen Klopp, who is also being talked about a lot in the corridors of the Bernabeu.
The German really does look like a figure whose authority could influence the Madrid dressing room, and his charisma and ambition match the club’s level perfectly. At first glance, hiring Klopp seems entirely logical. But if you add a little context, it becomes clear that they are very different — and for a successful union between the German and Madrid, someone will have to start changing, otherwise there will be several mines on this path from the very start.
The first mine is perhaps the least obvious, but the coach himself constantly draws attention to it. Jurgen is quite honest with himself — and he is very tired. You can point as much as you like at Mircea Lucescu, who coached almost until his death, or Roy Hodgson, who returned to Bristol City at 78. But Klopp is constant rock and roll, and you cannot produce that non‑stop on command. It is as if we were asking Mick Jagger to create a new ‘Satisfaction’ every three years.
Klopp left Liverpool exhausted by the permanent race with Manchester City, which cost him a lot of energy and health. “If people say that the rivalry between me and Pep Guardiola, whom I consider the best in the world, was incredible, then of course that means I am also a pretty good coach. I understood that, but it never really sank in. I am no longer a coach — and wow, it turns out I really was good,” he said with a laugh.
Of course, the German is being a little coy, but right now he is far from being in peak condition: “I do not miss anything,” he told The Athletic when asked about a return. To take over Madrid and come back to the very top, you have to really want it, because Klopp without his trademark spark is a completely different coach. The last thing anyone wants is to see a depressive Klopp trying to rediscover his old self. We have already seen something similar with Mourinho and with Guardiola last season.
The second mine is laid inside Madrid themselves. In a perfect world, or in sterile laboratory conditions, Klopp with Madrid’s resources should absolutely deliver results. But that is only if you ignore the fact that Madrid are run by Perez and that Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe play up front. The current Madrid need no fewer surgical interventions than Eder Militao’s knees, because the strength of Los Blancos on paper does not match what we see on the pitch.
At almost 80, Perez is unlikely to change — he adores his stars, and every coach has to live with that. Vinicius and Mbappe are not going anywhere — that is what the Madrid leaks say, and neither player is keen to leave.
How they are supposed to play for one of the most intensity‑obsessed coaches, though, is unclear. Right now these two can sustain that level for no more than five games a season, but Klopp will want full commitment on the pitch both against Bayern Munich and against Alaves. The chances of seeing a repeat of Vinicius’ autumn protest in a Clasico only increase with the German’s arrival. Madrid do have plenty of players who would suit Klopp perfectly — Federico Valverde, Eduardo Camavinga, Jude Bellingham, Trent Alexander‑Arnold. But what to do with the rest?
The third mine lies in Klopp’s systemic approach. In all his teams he was the main superstar. No matter who played for him — Robert Lewandowski, Marco Reus, Mohamed Salah or Virgil van Dijk — it was Klopp’s team. All his headliners became superstars under him, which made communication inside the squad much easier. The dressing room was the key to his teams’ success. Now Klopp would have to get used to being a nanny for stars with big egos. Back in the day he parted with Philippe Coutinho without much sentiment, but Perez protects his own ‘Coutinhos’.
Klopp joined both Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool as a bright ray of hope when the clubs were going through depressive periods. Madrid, even though they have not won a title for two years, do not publicly acknowledge any crisis. Alvaro Arbeloa praises the players, and we only hear about Perez’s dressing‑room comments from leaked reports via third parties. No one is saying the team need radical changes; everyone continues to believe in the existing leaders. Klopp’s arrival in Valdebebas would not be perceived as a last chance, and he would not receive the kind of carte blanche he had on Merseyside.
He is unlikely to be treated as harshly as Xabi Alonso, but if you imagine a third trophyless season in a row for Los Blancos, the chances of carrying out a rebuild would be extremely slim. At Liverpool he could afford reset seasons; here they expect maximum results straight away. He has never worked in such conditions.
So what looks like a perfect solution at first glance could become a minefield for both sides. Madrid in the Perez era need new Vicente del Bosques and Carlo Ancelottis, while Klopp needs time and space for change — and those pieces are unlikely to fit together.