According to France 24, the former Liverpool manager made the remarks while working as a television pundit alongside former Germany and Bayern Munich midfielder Thomas Müller, before Germany’s opening match against Curaçao.

Punditry role sparks a row

Klopp, who stepped away from club management in 2024, said he would have picked a different starting line-up from Nagelsmann’s. The comment quickly attracted attention, not least because Klopp has repeatedly been linked with the Germany job.

He added that “luckily, Julian Nagelsmann is still picking the team, for now,” a remark that was widely read as needlessly provocative given the public debate around the national team.

Germany went on to win the match 7-1, but the result did little to quieten the discussion around Klopp’s words.

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Matthäus and Effenberg hit back

Lothar Matthäus, Germany’s record appearance holder, said Klopp should have been more careful with his comments. He argued that public criticism from such a high-profile figure could make Nagelsmann’s job more difficult.

Matthäus also questioned how Klopp would have reacted during his own coaching career if a television pundit had advised him to leave out a key player before an important Champions League match.

Stefan Effenberg was more direct. The former Bayern Munich midfielder called the remarks unacceptable, saying such a comment might be made casually in private but not in front of millions of viewers.

Nagelsmann refuses to escalate

Nagelsmann chose not to confront the criticism directly. Speaking before the match, the Germany coach said the country had “plenty of experts” and described Müller and Klopp as “good lads” who had achieved a great deal in football.

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His response appeared designed to avoid turning the issue into a larger public dispute, even as the comments continued to dominate the build-up.

Klopp admits mistake

Klopp moved quickly to apologise, saying he regretted the remark almost immediately.

“I could have slapped myself across the face for saying that,” he said, adding that the comment had slipped out casually and carried no deeper meaning.

The episode highlights the difficult line former coaches must walk when moving into punditry. For someone of Klopp’s stature, even an offhand remark can quickly become a national football debate.

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