Klopp's agent dismisses Real Madrid approach as presidential election fuels speculation

Jurgen Klopp’s agent has flatly denied that the former Liverpool manager is considering a return to club football, after Real Madrid presidential candidate Enrique Riquelme named him as his first-choice coach should he unseat incumbent Florentino Perez in Sunday’s election at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Riquelme, a businessman challenging Perez for the club’s presidency, pledged to appoint Klopp alongside a pair of high-profile signings. “The manager we want for our Real Madrid project is Jurgen Klopp,” Riquelme said. “On Monday, if we win the elections, our director Raul will get in touch with Klopp.”

The remarks prompted a swift rebuttal from Klopp’s representative, Marc Kosicke. “It’s annoying,” Kosicke told Sky Sports Germany. “He’s not planning to return to coaching a club and is happy at Red Bull.” Klopp has been serving as Head of Global Soccer for Red Bull since leaving Liverpool at the end of the 2023-24 season.

This is not the first time Klopp has been linked with the Madrid job. In March, he was reported as the leading candidate to succeed Alvaro Arbeloa at the end of the season. At the time, the 58-year-old denied any contact had taken place but left the door open to an eventual return to management. “If Real Madrid had phoned, we would have heard about it by now,” he said. “They haven’t called even once, not once. My agent is there, you can ask him. They haven’t called him either.”

Klopp did, however, stop short of ruling out a future return to the dugout. “For my age I’m quite advanced in life, but as a coach I’m not completely finished. I haven’t reached retirement age. Who knows what will happen in the coming years? But there’s nothing planned.”

While Madrid’s managerial situation remains unresolved, Liverpool have moved on. Andoni Iraola was appointed this week on a two-year contract, replacing Arne Slot, who was dismissed after the club finished fifth in the Premier League this season. The former Bournemouth manager acknowledged he will need to adapt his methods at Anfield but insisted his high-intensity, pressing-based style will remain central to his approach.

“I think I have the advantage that I’ve been here already three years in the Premier League and people for sure have seen Bournemouth play,” Iraola said. “There are some things that obviously we need to change coaching Liverpool. But I wouldn’t like to lose our identity, the intensity, the aggressiveness, the organisation.”