Liverpool star Alexis Mac Allister has revealed he first caught wind of Jurgen Klopp's imminent Anfield exit after a misunderstanding with team-mate Mohamed Salah.
Klopp confirmed on January 26 that he'll be stepping down from his post as Reds manager after nine years at the helm. The former Borussia Dortmund boss first took the reins back in October 2015 and has won eight major trophies with Liverpool, including their first Premier League title in 2020.
In that time, Klopp has made a number of shrewd signings and while Mac Allister's Liverpool career is still in its early stages, landing the World Cup winner's signature for just £35million is starting to look like a bargain. The Argentina international played the majority of Sunday's Carabao Cup final success against Chelsea and put in a positive performance.
The 1-0 win over the Blues secured Mac Allister's first piece of silverware in English football but it could be his last under Klopp, depending on how the remainder of the campaign goes. The Liverpool midfielder has explained that it was Salah who broke the news to him that the boss was leaving and at first, Mac Allister thought he meant immediately.
"The moment was a bit crazy," Mac Allister told TyC Sports when asked about the moment he heard of Klopp's exit. "We found out five minutes before it was publicly known in an unusual meeting. I was sitting next to (Mohamed) Salah, I asked him, and he told me ‘The coach is leaving’.
Chelsea complete record-breaking Enzo Fernandez transfer after deadline day rush"I thought he [Klopp] was leaving at that moment, but after he told us, I understood that it was when the season was ending. It’s a personal decision.
"He has been here for many years, and we want the best for him. This motivated us much more because we have to make it very special. His departure has to be very nice."
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Emotions were running high among the Reds camp after the Wembley win, with Klopp declaring the League Cup "easily the most special trophy" he has won during his nine years at the club. He told the media: "What we see here today is so exceptional, we might never see again and not because I am on the sideline, because these things don't happen in football.
"I got told outside that there's an English phrase, 'you don't win trophies with kids' – I didn't know that. Yeah! There are longer careers than mine but in more than 20 years, [it's] easily the most special trophy I ever won. It's absolutely exceptional."
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