Jurgen Klopp fired a parting dig at Chelsea and Manchester United, as he bid farewell to Liverpool on Tuesday night.
The 56-year-old, who made the decision to leave the club this summer and has been replaced by Arne Slot, attended a Q&A event in front of 10,000 supporters at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool, breaking down in tears as fans chanted his name.
Klopp joked that he had been told to avoid discussing topics such as referees, VAR and 12:30pm kick-offs, instead turning his attention to rivals clubs.
Questioning Chelsea’s decision to sack Mauricio Pochettino, Klopp revealed his relief that he worked Liverpool’s owners Fenway Sports Group and not the seemingly trigger-happy ownership led by Todd Boehly at Stamford Bridge.
“We should be really happy we have them (Fenway Sports Group) and not guys who bought London clubs,” Klopp said. “I wouldn't have survived a year at Liverpool (with them).
“Finally they (Chelsea) play football which everyone thinks ‘Oh, they might be back’ and then they sack the manager anyway.
“The owners (at Liverpool) feel responsible for the club. Are they the best in the world? I don't know, I can't say. But they worked really hard. I felt supported.”
Klopp also appeared to criticise Erik ten Hag’s treatment of Jadon Sancho, who spent the second-half of the season on loan at Borussia Dortmund after falling out with the United boss.
Sancho arrived at Old Trafford from Dortmund in 2021 and, while he struggled to produce his best form consistently in a United shirt, Klopp insisted the winger deserved more support, rather than being shipped out of the club.
“If the whole world loses trust and faith in the player, the manager has to be the one behind the player,” Klopp said.
“I cannot just buy into that ‘he's useless’, like other clubs did by the way - buying a player for £80million and then sending him out on loan!”
