Sad and shocked – Jurgen Klopp continues to attract criticism for Red Bull move

Former Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund manager Jurgen Klopp accepted an offer last week to become the Global Head of Soccer at the Red Bull Group, starting from 1st January 2025.

The German left Liverpool at the end of last season as a cult hero after an extremely successful period as their manager, which lasted close to nine years.

He became the first Liverpool manager to win the league in 30 years and also won the Champions League with the Reds amongst various other honours.

Klopp remains a hero for Liverpool and their fans but his image in Germany has taken a beating since he agreed to take up the overarching role with the Red Bull Group.

Dortmund fans have been left furious by his decision to join the Red Bull Group given they are probably the most unpopular football owners in Germany with RB Leipzig being the most hated club in the country.

Red Bull’s corporate practices are the antithesis of how football clubs operate in Germany and Klopp was seen as the man of the people in his homeland.

He has even been accused of breaking his promise to Liverpool fans and now a former Dortmund star has come out against his ex-manager.

Jurgen Klopp should not come anywhere near the Süd (the famous south stand of the Westfalenstadion) – Ex-Dortmund star
Kevin Grosskreutz was a popular figure in Klopp’s Dortmund team that won back-to-back Bundesliga titles and reached the Champions League final.

He left Dortmund when Klopp decided to move on in 2015 and is considered one of the players who were very close to the former manager.

The right-back has revealed his sense of betrayal from Klopp and conceded that he was sad and shocked to hear that his former manager joined the Red Bull Group.

He doesn’t want to see Klopp anywhere near Dortmund’s stadium again and insisted that he is keen to personally tell him what a bad move he made by doing what he did.

“Somehow it still hasn’t really sunk in. I was hoping it was fake news. It was a shock, and sad too,” Grosskreutz said on the Viertelstunde Fussball podcast via Sky Deutschland.

“But as a fan, I don’t have to see him in front of the Süd anymore.

“When we meet, I’ll tell him personally that I think it’s crap that he does something like that.”

Klopp’s decision to move to the Red Bull Group appeared to have little effect on his popularity at Liverpool but Dortmund fans and German football are still seething.