Jurgen Klopp's legacy in Liverpool may already have been put in stone, but Harvey Elliott believes that the impact of his former manager on Anfield deserves to be commemorated with a statue.
Klopp walked away as Liverpool manager last summer and ended a nine-year spell as a boss in which he won seven large titles, including the Premier League and European Cup.
Elliott signed for Liverpool from Fulham as a 16-year-old in 2019 and so, until the arrival of Arne Slot this season had only known one head boss.
The winger was therefore understandably emotional when he lifted the lid on the day the team was unexpectedly called for a meeting in which his mentor announced that he would leave the club at the end of that season.
“It was a really strange situation,” Elliott told Amazon Prime Video.
'Jurgen was not really one for meetings after a competition. All guys spoke say, “What's going on?” Because it has never happened before.
'While he came in, you knew something was wrong and that he was going to say something because he is normally bubbles and joking. That's when he told us.
“It was really weird that day. It felt like you were lost someone. Everyone was just quiet. It felt like the entire building was quiet because we didn't know how to take the news.
“Until he left it was strange, in an attempt to get your head around that he was leaving.”
Slot was given the discouraging task to follow up a club legend when he took over the Liverpool boss at the start of this season. But the Dutchman has hit the ground and his team is about to secure the Premier League title-with a 12-point lead in second place Arsenal.
Slot has kept in touch with his predecessor – the couple occasionally spoke on the phone after competitions – and has credited Klopp for the team he inherited.
Elliott also believes that the basis for the success of this season was determined by Klopp and believes that the German contribution to the club deserves to be characterized by a statue.
“The players, the fans, everyone in this building and all over the world feel together and I think that is because of him,” said Elliott.
“I am surprised that there is no statue of him yet. He came in, he built up the team. He won so many things, he has an inheritance that will live forever. Even after I am dead, it will continue.
“He deserves what he did for this team, made it as a family. The way he is like a person, the way he deals with everything that comes his way. He is a legend in my eyes and will be a legend in this club forever. '
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