Sport

You’ll never talk alone: Jürgen Klopp’s homage to spirit of Bill Shankly is a lesson for all leaders

The German coach has shown how it is possible to harness a culture to inspire individuals

Jürgen Klopp celebrates after winning the Carabao Cup Final last month. During his first press conference the German announced “I am a normal guy,” he said. “I come from the Black Forest … I am the Normal One.” Picture: Getty

Jürgen Klopp keeps a photograph of Bill Shankly hanging in his office. It’s appropriate that Liverpool’s German coach doffs his black baseball cap when he sees it for good luck. Klopp is his natural heir. The similarities between the two Messianic figures, and their impact at Liverpool Football Club, are striking.

When Shankly took over Liverpool in 1959, the club was languishing in the old Second Division. Anfield was "the biggest toilet in Liverpool,” he ...