13 January 2023 , 11:51
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Liverpool assistant manager Pep Lijnders says he will remain as Jurgen Klopp's number two until his contract runs out - then he will be his "own manager" and embark on something new.
The Dutchman's admission comes following a string of stories about the coach, in which he recently admitted he nearly joined Manchester United and was accused by Jamie Carragher of being to blame for Liverpool's current woes - a point that sparked something of a Lijnders backlash, with many fans on social media agreeing.
Lijnders worked as a first-team coach and assistant at Liverpool from 2014-17, first under Brendan Rodgers before Jurgen Klopp's appointment. He left to pursue his own managerial ambitions, taking the reins of second-tier Dutch side NEC in 2018.
But things didn't go to plan for Lijnders, who was sacked after just one season for failing to gain promotion to the Eredivisie. He subsequently returned to Merseyside in the same year - just as Zeljko Buvac was leaving Anfield - and has subsequently worked under Klopp ever since.
Speaking to Four Four Two magazine, Lijnders has provided an update on his future, in which he explained he'll stay at Liverpool for as long as Klopp needs him, or until his contract runs out in 2026, and will then move on to pastures new.
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He said: "I will assist Jurgen and Jurgen only. After this project, I will be my own manager. When our contract finishes, I will sit down with my agent and see what's available."
In the same interview, he admitted his career could have been very different as he nearly joined Liverpool rivals Man United in 2013.
Pep Lijnders coaching at Liverpool's Melwood training ground (Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)"I had been at the academy of Porto since 2007 and had started to think about a next step," Lijnders said. "[In 2013] I received an approach from Manchester United – Alex Ferguson and his Dutch assistant Rene Meulensteen wanted to bring me to the club. It looked really good, but a few months later Ferguson retired and the opportunity fell through.
"One year later, Liverpool showed an interest and I became their under-16s coach. After a while, I began to speak with Brendan Rodgers, who was curious about how I was implementing a 3-4-3 system in my team."
Liverpool have won the Premier League and Champions League while Lijnders has been at the club, but Carragher recently suggested that the Reds' current poor form could have something to do with the coach's influence behind the scenes at Anfield.
Carragher said on Sky Sports: "I don't know if there's an influence from Pep Lijnders, who is Jurgen Klopp's assistant, he has a huge say in what's going on as well and there's a Dutch way of thinking - getting players on the ball.
"Thinking Liverpool need to reinvent themselves and always keep tweaking things and changing things because people are used to them. But for me, from minute one of Jurgen Klopp's era at Tottenham away - forget the quality of players - people were sprinting all over the pitch.
"I don't see people sprinting around anymore, but they still play with this high line. This is not a Jurgen Klopp team I'm watching anymore."