Klopp: If you are not Messi you have to defend, I never had Messi so they all have to defend

Klopp was interviewed by The Diary Of A CEO, in which he talked about leading the team.

Host: Can you give me an example of how you treat two people differently and explain why you made such a decision?

Klopp said: Take young players as an example. Arnold was promoted to the first team at that time. And Milner was already, I can't remember the exact age, probably about 31 years old.

Milner first made it clear that Arnold should not be too indulgent. There was a lot for him to learn.

Milner does not need special reminders to do certain things because he can do them himself. But with Arnold, you still need to teach him. This example may not be something you expected, but it explains the difference quite well.

There is a big age gap between them, one is 16 or 17 years old, and the other is 33 years old. This in itself shows that it is impossible to treat them the same way. So we talk about the rules in football: everyone has to work hard, everyone has to defend the opponent with all their strength. This is what everyone has to accept.

I have always said that if you are not Messi, you have to defend. Because I never had Messi, they all had to defend. But in order for them to truly grow as a team, everyone has to accept that. Although wearing the same jersey, the players each have their own characteristics. In order for these characteristics to flourish, you have to treat each person in the right way.

That’s what I like to talk about: how to do that, and that’s what I talk to players about during the season. Of course, there are discussions about football, but we have enough meetings already.