David Moyes sacked: Jurgen Klopp rules himself out of the running for Manchester United job
Klopp admits that he feels familiar' with United's fans but is 'still in love' with Borussia Dortmund
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Your support makes all the difference.Jürgen Klopp has ruled himself out of the running for the vacant Manchester United after David Moyes was sacked on Tuesday morning, the Borussia Dortmund manager has confirmed.
Klopp was among the favourites to be targeted by the Glazer family, who dispensed with Moyes’ services following widespread reports that the Scot would not see out the season. Alongside Holland coach Louis van Gaal, Klopp was expected to be approached regarding the role at Old Trafford, but he has made it poignantly clear that he has no intention of leaving Dortmund while he had a contract to honour.
“Man Utd is a great club and I feel very familiar with their wonderful fans,” Klopp informed The Guardian. “But my commitment to Borussia Dortmund and the people is not breakable.”
Klopp extended his contract with last season’s Champions League runners-up in October last year, meaning that should he stay true to his word and honour the deal, he would not be available to move to any other club until 2018. The perception that Dortmund are unable to break through a glass ceiling is not one that Klopp agrees with, even though he has had to endure the departure of his two best players in the past year to Bayern Munich. It was this time last year that Bayern rocked the boat with the news that they had triggered Mario Götze’s release clause, even though they were to meet Dortmund in the Champions League final at Wembley.
And it was the turn of star-striker Robert Lewandowski to head to the Allianz Arena, when he announced in January that he would leave Dortmund on a free transfer after running down his contract, with a move to the Bundesliga champions set to be completed at the end of the season.
Their rivalry will be renewed when the two sides meet in the German Cup final in Berlin next month, where Klopp will look to add a fourth trophy to his current collection that is made up of two Bundesliga titles and a German FA Cup crown.
The club have also looked into signing United’s playmaking midfielder Shinji Kagawa, who left Dortmund in 2012 to head to Old Trafford in a £17.6m deal. Kagawa has struggled to secure a regular starting berth – especially under Moyes – but is now believed to be happy to await confirmation of a new manager and see where his first-team status is before deciding where his future lies.
Dortmund must also find a new striker to replace Lewandowski, with the Polish international’s departure robbing Klopp of his most lethal finisher he’s had during his six-year spell in charge.
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