Jürgen Klopp is the new German national team coach—and apparently, his career almost ended up at FC Bayern twice. Years after his first attempt, Uli Hoeneß reportedly made another effort to bring the successful coach to Munich.
By appointing Jürgen Klopp as the new national team coach, the DFB has secured one of the most successful German coaches of the past decades. However, the 59-year-old almost ended up at FC Bayern much earlier.
As early as 2008, the Munich club was already taking a close look at Klopp. At the time, the current national team coach was still managing 1. FSV Mainz 05, before the record champions ultimately opted for Jürgen Klinsmann.
On the “Bayern Insider” podcast, BILD’s head of soccer, Christian Falk, recalled that first attempt: “We all know that Uli Hoeneß would have liked to have him back then. At the time, he was still the coach at Mainz.”
Hoeneß made a second attempt
But that apparently wasn’t the end of the honorary president’s interest. Years later, according to Falk, Hoeneß tried again to bring Klopp to Munich.
“Uli Hoeneß tried again. That was back when he was desperate to keep Jupp Heynckes,” said Falk.
At the time, Hoeneß reportedly contacted the coach’s management directly to inquire whether a signing was possible despite his contract with Liverpool FC. The answer, however, was unequivocal: “But they made it very clear to him right away: ‘You don’t even need to talk to Jürgen. He’s not leaving there. Thanks for calling.'“
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Since Klopp wasn’t available, Bayern turned their attention to Thomas Tuchel. According to Falk, Tuchel also expressed a general interest: “And after getting that ‘no,’ the time had come: They approached Tuchel. They held a conference call with Tuchel and said, ‘Thomas, we’d love to have you at FC Bayern.’”
But that didn’t work out at first either. “And then Tuchel had to say: ‘I’m very pleased. I’d love to become Bayern’s coach, but I’ve already signed with another club.’ He didn’t say which one, but it was Paris Saint-Germain.”
In the end, Bayern opted for Niko Kovac, while Tuchel didn’t move to Säbener Straße until years later. Klopp, on the other hand, remained loyal to Liverpool—before now taking on the role of Germany’s national team coach for the first time.