Jürgen Klopp, former Liverpool manager, responds for the second time to ongoing rumors linking him to the Real Madrid coaching role for the second consecutive week.
On 20 Jan 2026 GMT+7, Jürgen Klopp, former Liverpool manager, gave an interview addressing the hot rumors connecting him with the head coach position at Real Madrid for the second week, following the club's official decision to dismiss Xabi Alonso.
Previously, Klopp had denied links to the Spanish club once. However, Florian Plettenberg, a well-known football journalist, reported that Klopp is open to returning to coaching if offered a position at Real Madrid or the German national team, keeping his name continuously discussed at Santiago Bernabéu.
The former “Reds” coach admitted he was not surprised by Xabi Alonso's dismissal: “At first, I was both surprised and not surprised. I thought, ‘What?’ then told myself, ‘Of course,’ because at Madrid, if the team is not at the top of the table, things like this can always happen.”
He emphasized that he is currently happy with his break from coaching: “Right now, I’m satisfied with how things are. I don’t want to be anywhere else, and I’m neither excited nor worried about the Real Madrid rumors since most are just media speculation.”
However, Klopp admitted he cannot completely close the door on returning to coaching: “If you ask me now, I’d probably say ‘no,’ but I can’t say ‘never.’ No one knows what the future holds.”
“I would advise Real Madrid’s management that when dismissing a coach, they should be clear about who will succeed and consider all aspects carefully. If they are thinking about signing Pep, I don’t think the chances are very high.”