'JURGEN KLOPP DROPPED ME TO LIVERPOOL'S THIRD KEEPER – BUT I'LL NEVER FORGET HIS ONE CLASS ACT'
Like most top managers, Jurgen Klopp has both happy and hard-hearted sides - and Adam Bogdan saw both first-hand.
The former Hungary international joined Liverpool from Bolton Wanderers in the summer of 2015, just a few months before Klopp took over at Anfield. And it was prior to Klopp's arrival on Merseyside that Bogdan saved three penalties in a League Cup shootout win over Carlisle, with the Reds going on to finish as runners-up in the competition.
A cut-throat start to life at Anfield saw Bogdan, 36, relegated to third choice among Klopp's goalkeeping corps. However, the manager later proved he had a heart with one gesture that Bogdan will never forget.
"Danny Ward came back to the club in January 2016, a couple of months after Klopp arrived," Bogdan exclusively told Ladbrokes Fanzone. "I had no complaints about that decision, because I wasn't doing well. The way that I found out about that decision was not very nice, though, and that, coupled with the fact I knew I wasn't doing as well as I knew I could, it brought a lot of emotion out of me.
"You start self-blaming, and your head is down, and you just can't afford to do those kind of things at top clubs like Liverpool. The one thing Jurgen Klopp did do, though, was put me on the bench for the Carabao Cup final. Even though I was third-choice at the time, he put me back on the bench, which was a touch that I will never forget.
"That's a class act from him, even when I put aside everything that happened with Danny coming back to the club, or whatever he thought of me. He realised that I was a big part of that cup run and he put me back into the squad at Wembley to recognise that."
Liverpool ended up losing the 2016 Carabao Cup final to Manchester City on penalties having won a shootout against Stoke in the semis. It was the first and only season in which Bogdan made any telling impact at the club, spending time on loan at Wigan and Hibernian before leaving Anfield on a free in 2019.
Klopp, 56, has been perceived as both the loveable, emotionally driven coach by some and the ruthless tactician by others. But as his nine-year Liverpool tenure approaches its end this summer, it's difficult to deny that regardless of how he went about his business, the former Borussia Dortmund boss has brought pride back to Anfield.
Despite not lifting the title that day at Wembley, Bogdan has long savoured the fact he was involved in even the faintest sense. As fate would have it, Klopp's Liverpool reign both started and ended with a League Cup final in his first and last seasons, though this time around they managed to beat Chelsea to the crown.
DON'T SCRAP REPLAYS! Join our petition to keep the magic of the FA Cup alive!
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
2024-05-09T14:41:19Z dg43tfdfdgfd