Liverpool have lost analyst Mark Leyland to Newcastle United – and Jurgen Klopp has offered his reaction to the move today.
Leyland heads to Newcastle
Reports from The Independent on Tuesday suggested that Leyland had agreed a move to Newcastle United.
The plan for Leyland would be for him to coach as well as offer analysis, combining two roles at Newcastle.
Leyland worked with current Magpies boss Eddie Howe at Burnley and has now decided to reunite with him at St James’ Park.
The report suggested that Jurgen Klopp wanted Leyland to stay after eight years at Anfield, but that didn’t stop the move.
Klopp reacts to Leyland exit
Ironically, Liverpool take on Newcastle in the Premier League on Thursday night.
That means Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has been speaking to the media today and tackled the subject of Leyland’s exit.
Speaking to the Liverpool Echo, Klopp called Leyland ‘incredibly important’ with his analysis and one-to-one work.
Klopp noted that Leyland is a ‘top guy’ but simply wanted to leave Liverpool for a ‘next step’ – and feels Newcastle is exactly that.
“Mark was here longer than I was here and was an incredibly important member of our staff with his post-match analysis and the individual work he did with the players,” said Klopp.
“He was a top guy on top of that, but he had a chance to get a more senior role at Newcastle which we couldn’t offer here. He was eager to make next step in his career,” he added.
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