Tottenham Hotspur head coach Ange Postecoglou joked that he would like Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp to take time away from football for competitive reasons, but ultimately empathised with his decision to step down due to tiredness.
Klopp will leave Liverpool at the end of the 2023/24 season, citing fatigue as one of his main reasons to do so.
Speaking ahead of Spurs’ 1-0 defeat to Manchester City in the FA Cup fourth round on Friday night, Postecoglou admitted he understood why Klopp wants to enjoy a rest.
“I guess I was as surprised as anyone else because he’s a top manager and they are flying at the moment,” Postecoglou replied when asked about his initial reaction to the news.
“But also understanding, at the back of my mind, all of us who have been in the game a while, it’s the constant thought in your head because you know how much you need to put into the position. He’s probably one of the unique ones, he will go down as one of the best, when you do that at one club that is the uniqueness of it, you have to rebuild teams all the time within the same context.”
Postecoglou ended by joking his competitive edge wants him to see Klopp stay away from football, while he wouldn’t feel as bad when he decides to leave the game too.
“It is totally understandable, my only wish is he does stay out of the game a little while for a couple of reasons. The obvious one about the competitiveness but also it gives me a bit of hope that when I call it a day I am not going to get the urge to come back too quickly!” the Spurs boss added.
Postecoglou, a boyhood fan of Liverpool, has only faced Klopp once in his career so far, with his Tottenham side prevailing 2-1 in controversial circumstances back in September.
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