What new City coach Pep Lijnders refused to say out loud at Liverpool says a lot

Daily Mirror

a day ago

After almost 10 years at Liverpool, Pep Lijnders' move to Manchester City has been met with raised eyebrows, yet it seems Pep Guardiola has appointed himself a coach who's not afraid to say how it is
Pep Guardiola looks to have appointed an assistant manager who has a wealth of experience in dealing with big personalities in former Liverpool coach Pep Lijnders. Manchester City announced the arrival of Lijnders on Tuesday, as Guardiola looks to shake-up the club's backroom staff ahead of the 2025/26 season.
The Dutchman worked with Jurgen Klopp for almost 10 years at the Reds and once discussed just how he deals with being No. 2 to the German – one of football's biggest characters.
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After a brief managerial stint at Red Bull Salzburg came to an end in December, Lijnders is now back in the UK and has now taken a position under one of the game's other big personas in Guardiola. Yet the Spaniard can't be said to have hired a 'yes man.'
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Back in July 2020, Lijnders claimed that he had a handle on Klopp's powerful and superstar-like temperament, as the duo forged an off-pitch relationship over racquet sport, padel.
"Jurgen is fanatical about it – and he's good, too," Lijnders said. "But we never say he's the best out loud – otherwise he starts to walk around like Conor McGregor."
Lijnders comments are no doubt respectful to his former boss, despite the likening his unchecked ego to that of former UFC star McGregor. Yet reading between the lines, his remarks show a man who is unafraid to say it how it is.
The former Reds coach also appears fearless when it comes to discussing some of Klopp's less attractive attributes in public. Lijnders' comments go some way to show that he's a coach that can keep major characters in check, as demonstrated by his refusal to massage his former boss' ego.
The news of Lijnders joining Liverpool 's Premier League title rivals has naturally been controversial amongst Reds fans. Lijnders did briefly leave Liverpool for a spell at Dutch side NEC Nijmegen at the start of 2018 before coming back to Merseyside.
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Upon his return he helped turn Liverpool into Premier League champions and aided in delivering the club's sixth European Cup, amongst a plethora of trophies. However, Lijnders' switch to the Citizens comes after he claimed that he would never work as an assistant manager again.
'I owe this club everything,' Lijnders told Liverpool's club's website in February 2024. 'I always said I will finish with Jurgen; the moment I will not assist anyone else, that's the moment I will go and I will manage. That was always the case."
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Yet the lure of working at one of the Premier League's biggest clubs, and under a manager like Pep Guardiola, is perhaps too tempting for anyone to turn down, regardless of their feelings toward a former employer.
Lijnders now joins City six months after being sacked by Salzburg, where he won just 13 of his 29 games. However, his status as a No. 2 is stellar, with Klopp often eager to praise his former right-hand man.
"I have been lucky enough to meet many, many people in football during my time in the game and I don't think I have ever met anyone with the energy and enthusiasm he has for this game," Klopp said about Lijnders in 2023.
'I think I have said in the past, there is nothing he does not know about this sport. His passion for it is remarkable and his enthusiasm in training each day is infectious"
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