CAPE TOWN – According to former Liverpool captain Phil Thompson, Jurgen Klopp’s wife convinced the then Borussia Dortmund manager to snub Manchester United’s advances when they were looking for a replacement for Sir Alex Ferguson.
Whn Ferguson retured at the end of the 2012/13 season, Ed Woodward identified Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp as the perfect candidates to replace the legendary Scot.
Woodward’s first choice, Guardiola, had already committed to taking over at Bayern Munich, so Klopp was invited by the club, and was even given a tour of Old Trafford as United rolled out the red carpet.
According to Thompson, it was Klopp’s wife Ulla who persuaded the charismatic German to stay with Dortmund, whom he had guided to titles in 2010/11 and 2011/12.
“I interviewed Klopp for Sky, and I asked if he and Liverpool were created for each other. He looked at me and asked ‘Why?’,” the former Liverpool player said.
“Then Klopp told me he could have taken over Manchester United, but his wife said it wasn’t right. When Liverpool arrived, his wife said it was right. There is something strange there. It is as if he’s created for Liverpool,” said Thompson.
Klopp eventually left Dortmund at the end of the 2014/15 season following the sacking of Brendan Rodgers. After failing to get Klopp to take over from Ferguson, Manchester United ended up with David Moyes.