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Jurgen Klopp is often known as one of the best man-managers in world football and has turned many players into global superstars.
During his initial years as the manager of Borussia Dortmund, Klopp had several young players who he made into world beaters. This helped him transform the fortunes of Dortmund, helping the club win back-to-back league titles in 2011 and 2012, and the German Cup in 2012.
Even at Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp transformed the likes of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold into world class players. This enabled Liverpool to win the Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, Club World Cup and the 2019-20 Premier League, the Reds' first in 30 years.
Jurgen Klopp was forced to let go of some of these superstars
With some of his players performing at an exceptionally high level, it's no surprise that it has attracted interest from a host of Europe's top clubs. Some of these players had their release clauses in their contract met while others handed in a transfer request to leave the club. As such, Jurgen Klopp had no choice but to sanction the departure of these players.
Without further delay, let's we take a look at the five superstars Jurgen Klopp was forced to let go:
#5 Nuri Sahin (Borussia Dortmund to Real Madrid)
Nuri Sahin joined Borussia Dortmund in 2001, and made his senior debut just four years later, becoming the then youngest player to play in the Bundesliga, aged 16. The midfielder was then sent on loan to Feyenoord before returning to Dortmund and becoming an important part of Jurgen Klopp's side.
Sahin helped Borussia Dortmund win the Bundesliga title in the 2010-11 season and was also voted as the Bundesliga player of the year.
As such, Real Madrid came calling for the Turkey international. With Los Blancos activating his €10 million release clause and the player himself wanting a move, Jurgen Klopp's side resigned to losing the midfielder.
However, upon arriving at the Bernabeu, Sahin struggled with injuries and failed to dislodge the likes of Xabi Alonso and Sami Khedira in the middle of the park.
With Luka Modric's arrival in 2012, Sahin was sent on loan to Liverpool where he failed to make any impact, resulting in his loan spell being cut short in January.
Sahin then returned to Dortmund on loan where Jurgen Klopp was still the manager. He found his form upon his return to the Westfalenstadion, helping Dortmund reach the Champions League final in 2013. This resulted in the club making his move permanent.
Sahin ended up staying at Dortmund for four more years but despite some good moments, his second spell with the club was blighted by injuries. The 33-year-old is now plying his trade with Antalyaspor in Turkey.
#4 Georginio Wijnaldum (Liverpool to Paris Saint-Germain)
After failing to agree a new contract with Liverpool, Georginio Wijnaldum left Jurgen Klopp's side this summer as a free agent and joined Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain.
The Dutchman was a very important player for Liverpool since joining from Newcastle United in 2016. He was an integral part of the Liverpool side that won the Champions League and the Premier League in back-to-back seasons. The midfielder made 237 appearances in all competitions during his five seasons at the club, registering 22 goals and 16 assists.
Wijnaldum was a key part of Jurgen Klopp's gegenpressing at Liverpool. He was able to play as a pivot in midfield to provide cover to the backline while he also shone as a central midfielder with his high pressing on the pitch. Wijnaldum also had the knack of making late and effective runs into the box and scored some vital goals for the Reds.
The midfielder will be hoping to find similar success at PSG as they look to win their maiden Champions League title this season.
#3 Mario Gotze (Borussia Dortmund to Bayern Munich)
Another big player who was forced to let go by Jurgen Klopp was Borussia Dortmund's youth academy product Mario Gotze. The German joined Bayern Munich amid a lot of controversy after the Bavarians activated his release clause of €37 million in the 2012-13 season, hours before Dortmund's Champions League semi-final.
Back then, Gotze was an integral part of Jurgen Klopp's title-winning Dortmund side in 2010-11 and 2011-12. So, Dortmund fans were visibly frustrated when the German decided to join the club's bitter rivals.
Gotze claimed that his desire to play under Pep Guardiola was the main reason for his move. Unfortunately, the playmaker was badly affected by his manager's constant experimenting and shifting players around. As such, Gotze was relegated to the bench for most of the time and things got even worse when Carlo Ancelotti took charge and had no intention of playing him.
Gotze eventually returned to Borussia Dortmund in 2016, with Jurgen Klopp then having left the club. He had a difficult first two seasons upon his return to the club but won fans over during his performances in the 2018-19 season.
Gotze is now playing his football at PSV Eindhoven in the Netherlands after leaving Dortmund on a free transfer last summer.
#2 Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool to Barcelona)
Philippe Coutinho had developed into one of the world's best attacking midfielders under Jurgen Klopp and fans were devastated when he joined Barcelona for a reported £140 million in 2018.
The Catalans had pursued Coutinho for a while and had even made an initial bid which was rejected. But after the Brazilian handed in a transfer request, Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp had no choice but to let the midfielder go.
As such, Coutinho departed for Liverpool in January 2018 but the move hasn't quite worked out as expected. The midfielder managed to register just five goals and two assists in his first full season at the club which resulted in him being loaned out to Bayern Munich for the 2019-20 season.
He had a decent spell with the Bavarians and even scored twice off the bench to knock his parent club out of the Champions League, before returning the following season.
Injuries, however, have taken their toll and Coutinho has looked a fraction of his Liverpool self in Spain.
#1 Robert Lewandowski - (Borussia Dortmund to Bayern Munich)
Robert Lewandowski is, without a shadow of a doubt, the biggest superstar Jurgen Klopp has let go during his managerial career.
Lewandowski arrived at Signal Iduna Park in 2010 as an up-and-coming 22-year-old from Poland with bags of talent. He was merely used as a substitute to Lucas Barrios in his debut season as Dortmund clinched the Bundesliga title.
The youngster did however show a lot of promise and quickly established himself as a first team regular under Jurgen Klopp. He was instrumental in helping the team clinch a 'domestic double' in 2012, as the forward netted 30 goals in all competitions during the season.
Even though Dortmund couldn't pick up any major silverware after that, and even lost out in the Champions League final, the striker continued to impress everyone. He was a key part of Jurgen Klopp's heavy-metal football at Dortmund, registering 103 goals and 42 assists in 187 appearances for the club.
Soon enough, his performances attracted attention from a host of big clubs across Europe and the forward eventually departed for bitter rivals Bayern Munich in 2014. His absence was immediately felt by the club as Jurgen Klopp's side could only muster a seventh-placed finish the following season.
Lewandowski, on the other hand, has gone on to enjoy tremendous success at the Allianz Arena, winning several trophies while netting 307 goals for the club. He is still going strong in front of goal and is arguably the most lethal striker in Europe right now.
