'New one' Klopp promises fresh approach as Germany reign begins

BERLIN: Germany coach Jurgen Klopp has promised to bring a "new approach" to the country's flagging fortunes, as the four-time world champions begin their latest tilt at a maiden Nations League title.

On Monday, just days out from his side's opening match away against the Netherlands in Amsterdam on Thursday, Klopp recorded a video appealing to Germany fans at home and abroad.

Speaking English, the former Liverpool manager introduced himself as "the new one" in charge and thanked fans who "support us from all over the world."

The "new one" quip was a tip of the hat to the "normal one" quote from his Liverpool unveiling which became intimately entwined with his nine-year Anfield stint.

Now back in the dugout for the first time since leaving Merseyside in 2024, Klopp has promised a "new approach" as he hopes to return the fallen giants to the summit of the game.

"We will try everything to make our new approach visible. I expect more immediately," Klopp said Thursday.

"It might get a bit wild, but I'll take that; it just has to be lively."

After the trip to Amsterdam, Klopp will make his Germany home debut in Augsburg on September 27 against Greece, before hosting Serbia four days later and then concluding his opening taste of international football in Thessaloniki the following Sunday.

- 'Walk through fire for him' -

Klopp's consistent success at Mainz, Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool have given him a degree of standing shared by nobody else in modern German football.

Plenty of high-profile coaches have taken the Germany job, but few have been given so much control or so much scope to shake up the status quo.

His first step – naming a 44-man squad including 16 uncapped players which will be split into two match-day groups, while leaving out fan favourite Deniz Undav – showed a willingness to think differently.

Freiburg right-back Philipp Treu is one of those new call-ups. Not previously on the radar for German selection, the 25-year-old has never played under Klopp but summed up the attitude of many of those players who have been transformed by the coach over the years.

"You feel like you'd walk through fire for him," Treu said Tuesday, adding Klopp "is an incredible guy."

Another newcomer, Eintracht Frankfurt striker Younes Ebnoutalib, was courted by African champions and 2022 World Cup semi-finalists Morocco.

The Frankfurt-born forward opened up on his decision to choose Germany, while summing up Klopp's appeal.

"When Klopp calls, you have to go. He's one of the best coaches in the world and he brings a really positive energy," he said.

- 'Everything will be better' -

Semi-final regulars at major tournaments for more than a decade, Germany have won just one knockout game at the World Cup or Euros since 2016.

Klopp's task of breathing life into Germany's flagging fortunes is a mammoth one, but the 59-year-old is no stranger to resuscitating fallen giants.

Dortmund had only just beaten bankruptcy when Klopp took over. Inside five years, Klopp's Dortmund had won two league titles and played in a Champions League final.

At Liverpool, Klopp took a side who had made the Champions League just once in the past five seasons to three finals, winning one. And most important of all, he brought the league title back to Anfield for the first time in the Premier League era.

With a fractured media made up of former players eager to criticise the German FA (DFB), Klopp has set about uniting the country towards a common cause.

At his squad announcement, Klopp handed out sponsor hats in German flag colours with the message "one of 83 million."

Klopp has also contacted members of the DFB All-Stars – former players with at least one cap – asking for support, saying "we are all the national team."

Former player turned influential commentator Lothar Matthaeus was clearly won over by Klopp's charm offensive, writing in his Sky Germany column that "everything will be better" with Klopp in the main job.

"That wasn't always the case in recent years, but trust is important," the former Ballon d'Or winner wrote. - AFP