Heidel on close relationship with Klopp: "He still knows the Mainz score five minutes after full-time."
| Jürgen Klopp. | Photo: Paul Robinson/Creative Commons/CC-by-SA 2.0 |
Christian Heidel revealed to German footballing journalist Jörn Petersen of Kicker Magazine in a Thursday interview that he was very much looking forward to spending some time with former Mainz, Dortmund, and Liverpool head-coach Jürgen Klopp this summer. The pair both own vacation homes in Mallorca, to which they'll both retreat over the summer break.
"I'm now looking forward to spending a few more days with him," Heidel noted in an interview published in Kicker's Thursday print edition, "We're almost neighbors. We're in regular regular contact. Our two families are also very close. It's an extremely close relationship based on trust. Sometimes I know things that others don't know, and he knows the same from me."
Even though their professional relationship ended some 16 years ago, Heidel also noted that the 56-year remained loyal to the only Bundesliga club he ever represented; the one that would go on to launching his coaching career. Most Germans have totally forgotten that Klopp was born in Stuttgart and worked his way up through the ranks of Frankfurt-based clubs.
"Jürgen Klopp may not have been born in Mainz, but Mainz feels like his home and this club is very, very close to his heart," Heidel said, "Even though he won the Premier League with Liverpool FC, he knows the score of the Mainz game five minutes after the full-time whistle. That's a very, very special relationship."
As for what may come next for Klopp, Heidel ruled out the possibility of his friend diving straight back into football right away. As much as Germans would love to see him return to the sidelines in his home country, the Mainz executive emphasized that his friend needed some time to recharge his batteries. Klopp himself has admitted that he's grown tired of the life.
"If anyone deserves to simply enjoy life with his family, then it's him," Heidel said, "I can't imagine at all him coming back after three months. It could also be that after a year he says, 'That was fun, but I want to experience that pressure again.' I don't know his plans. If I did know, I'd also have to admit that I wouldn't tell you either."
