Wayne Rooney rues missed opportunity to play for this former Premier League coach 

Wayne Rooney did and won everything over the course of his nearly 20 year playing career. The Manchester United legend took some time to talk about one of his greatest rivals, Liverpool, and the manager that led them during his final years at Old Trafford.

Klopp is Rooney’s chosen one

Rooney was privileged to coincide with one of the greatest managers the game has ever seen. It was Sir Alex Ferguson who brought the youngster from Everton to the Theater of Dreams and turned him into one of the best players of a generation. Ferguson retired in 2013, four years before Rooney left Manchester and the former United no. 10 wished that he could have played for the man on the Anfield touchline.

On his self named BBC program, “Wayne Rooney Show” the former Red Devil heaped praise on former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp. “Klopp was the only Liverpool manager I’d have loved to play for. Not for Liverpool, of course,” claimed Rooney. Of course, before his Manchester United days Rooney grew up in the Everton academy which taught him how to dislike the team on the other end of Merseyside.

Despite the deep rooted animosity for the Reds, Rooney couldn’t ignore what Klopp brought not only to the touchline, not only to the dressing room, but to the city. “I’ve said before that Arne Slot doesn’t have the aura that Klopp has,” said Rooney. “What Klopp brought to the table, even just walking around a restaurant with a bottle of beer, that’s what the people of Liverpool love.”

Return to touchline for Klopp?

Klopp decided to walk away from the club at the end of the 2023/24 season and took a job with Red Bull as their Head of Global Soccer. While Arne Slot did win the Premier League in his first year with Liverpool, many people credit Klopp for building the team. Slot’s second year at the club hasn’t gone as smoothly after offloading a large portion of that title winning side to bring in some big money transfers last summer.

After Ferguson retired, Rooney stayed at the club for another four years. In those four years, three different full time managers came and went at Old Trafford. That was right around the time that Klopp left Borussia Dortmund and joined on as the Liverpool boss. He spent nine years as manager at Anfield winning a Premier League and a Champions League and cemented his status as a legend of the club.

Klopp is now rumored to be eyeing a return to the touchline after a couple years in a director role with Red Bull. Real Madrid are one of the most keen to sign the German boss, but reports suggest that Klopp has turned down the job at the Bernabeu. There is also speculation that Klopp could take over the Germany job once the World Cup finishes this summer.

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