Mario Götze praised his former trainer Jürgen Klopp and told entertaining anecdotes from their time together in Dortmund. “I’ve never seen a coach who is so funny on his own,” the BVB midfielder wrote in a letter to his fans. This was published in the Players’ Tribune. Götze reviewed the ups and downs of his career.
When Götze thinks of Klopp, the 2014 World Cup hero remembers one action in particular: “When I was 17 or 18 and didn’t give 100 percent in training, he became totally intimidating. He then came running to me, stood right in front of me and yelled at me,” the 26-year-old revealed. “You know how he talks, with his teeth grinding: ‘You must have more passion! You have to give it all! Damn you! Damn you! Come on!'”
The charismatic coach also has a completely different side, as Götze’s story also shows: “After the training he became totally calm, took you aside and said: ‘Mario, how are you? Let’s talk about life. What’s happening to you right now?'” In general, the BVB midfield star believes that many people have a false picture of the 51-year-old: “I think that most people only know the version of him that stands on the sidelines. There’s also a serious version.”
It was precisely the mixture of seriousness and humour that apparently shaped the young idols: “He knew how to treat me. He was an outstanding coach, but his personality was the most important thing to me as a young player.” Götze made his professional debut under Klopp at the age of just 17, in the following years the BVB won the championship twice and the DFB Cup once. In the summer of 2013, Götze switched to his rival FC Bayern Munich, and since 2016 he has been playing for BVB again.
