Klopp The Mastermind Of Dortmund's Success

[Folami David]

Juergen Klopp certainly likes all the attention that comes with being a high-profile football coach as he knows his limitations in other areas.
.
Klopp rules out fixing the house ("I am not talented at DIY and not the brightest person either"), a rockstar career ("No chance! Even though I once had 8 000 points on the Playstation karaoke singing Country Road") and not really an afternoon television talkshow host either ("Talking about issues I am not interested in, smiling and pretending to be interested").
.
Instead, "the job I have got and the work that I do is just wonderful for me and fits very good."
.
After all, Klopp not only has big entertainment qualities as at last week's Open Media Day, he is the man who led Borussia Dortmund to Bundesliga titles 2011 and 2012 under difficult conditions and into Saturday's Champions League final against Bayern Munich.
.
The 45-year-old came to Dortmund in 2008 after almost two decades as player and coach at Mainz, hailed as one of Germany's new innovative helmsmen.
.
Money was tight three years after Dortmund almost went bankrupt, so he had to rely on local youngsters such as Mario Goetze and Kevin Grosskreutz, or cheap signings such as Shinji Kagawa who has now moved on to Manchester United.
.
It was a blessing in disguise as the youngsters were skilled enough to play Klopp's preferred fast passing game and high pressing almost to perfection - working as hard on the pitch as Klopp on the sideline.
.
General manager Hans-Joachim Watzke describes Klopp as "the best possible coach you can get," sports director Michael Zorc "the front man ... in our way of playing football," and veteran captain Sebastian Kehl "a fantastic coach.
.
"He has done a lot here but his philosophy was clear from day one. It is about passion, running hard and the desire to win," Kehl said.
.
These ethics go down well in Dortmund amid the loyal 80 000 fans in Germany's biggest stadium, and the Ruhr-area which has also reinvented itself after the end of coal-mining and the slow-down of the steel industry.
.
Klopp maintains the image of football in its purest form, visible in his cap with "Poehler" written on it.
.
"A Poehler is a football boot here, and someone who meets with others on a field to play football. I like the comparison between the word and my team. We all know that football is big business, but the origin is the love for the game. And no one loves the game more than a Poehler," Klopp said.
.
Klopp is frequently named as a candidate to manage an English top club amid growing admiration for the game in Germany, and naturally also a contender for the Germany job should Joachim Loew resign.

[Shola Sholaz]

He has proven to the world that he is a world class coach. Borussia Dortmund would be nothing without his coaching input.