Jurgen Klopp used the national team break to return to his native Germany, visiting former club Mainz on Saturday.
Klopp once considered taking a sabbatical in 2024, but when he signed a new contract with Liverpool, he postponed his plans until at least 2026.
However, it is clear that her priorities have changed recently, as she used to spend her international breaks on hot vacations, now taking the opportunity to visit her new grandson.
That means frequent trips back to Germany, where he also organized a return trip this month to Mainz, where he began his managerial career.
Eleven years as a player at Mainz turned into seven more managers, building a reputation that saw him move to Dortmund in 2008 and Liverpool seven years later. His proudest achievement at Mainz was promotion to the Bundesliga in 2003/04 and it is no surprise that he is regarded as a legendary figure at the club.
On Saturday, Klopp headed to Mainz for a friendly with MSV Duisberg and greeted supporters outside the Bruchwegstadion before kick-off.
The friendly was organized as a farewell for fans to the Sudtribune section of the Bruchwegstadion, which will be demolished next year.
Mainz moved from the Bruchwegstadion to the new Mewa Arena in 2011, having previously played at the stadium for 82 years – since then it has continued to host the club’s youth games.
All of Klopp’s time at Mainz was, of course, spent playing at the Bruchwegstadion, so it was only fitting that he paid a ‘flying visit’ on a memorable day for the club. Fans gathered around the stage before the game greeted Klopp with chants of “Jurgen, Jurgen” as Liverpool loanee Sepp van den Berg kicked off.
He wore a shirt with the words “Sudtribune, stufen voller geschichte”, which in English means “South shore, step full of history”.
During his time at Mainz, Klopp played 340 times as a player before managing 269 games in all competitions.
Only two players have played more than Klopp in the club’s history – Dimo​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​
According to Transfermarkt, Klopp has also scored more goals than all but three players in the club’s history.
