Fabrizio Romano speaks out on Klopp to Barcelona rumours amid speculation

It would be 'more than complicated' for Barcelona to hire Jurgen Klopp as their manager for next season, according to Fabrizio Romano.

Shortly after Klopp's blockbuster announcement at the end of last week, Barça head coach Xavi Hernandez also revealed his plans to step down from his job this summer.

Speculation is rife about who will succeed the legendary player at Camp Nou, with Mikel Arteta, Hansi Flick and even Jose Mourinho among the early bookies' favourittes.

Meanwhile, some reports in Spain have suggested the club could even have an eye on Klopp.

A piece in Catalan outlet SPORT suggested that Klopp's links to Spain through a villa he owns in Majorca could bring him 'closer' to a move to Barcelona, while club president Joan Laporta is known to be a fan of the German.

Other publications have listed Klopp as a possible (if unlikely candidate) for the Barça job — despite his public insistence that he will take a sabbatical after leaving Liverpool.

However, transfer reporter Romano has played down links to Barcelona, suggesting there is nothing in the rumours to doubt Klopp's own statements about his next steps.

In his Daily Briefing for CaughtOffside on Monday morning, Romano wrote: “We’re inevitably seeing links with Barcelona now after Xavi also announced he was leaving his job there, but there is nothing ongoing now. It’s still all very early and fresh, Barca will take their time to decide, it’s not going to be decided in some days…step by step.

“Klopp has been very clear that he wants to stop for one season so I think it would be more than complicated for Barca or anyone else to hire him for next season. As of today, my understanding is there’s nothing going on on that front.”

Meanwhile, Football Transfers claim that Barcelona are actually most likely to appoint "affordable option" Francisco Garcia Pimienta, currently at Las Palmas, as their next manager.

What will Jurgen Klopp do after Liverpool?

Klopp has stated on numerous occasions that he plans to take a year-long break after leaving Liverpool at the end of the 2023/24 campaign.

Speaking to Sportbuzzer back in 2020, he said: "I'll take a year off and ask myself if I miss football. If I say no, then that will be the end of coach Jurgen Klopp. If one day I am no longer a coach, there is one thing I will not miss: the brutal tension immediately before the game."

In his announcement on Friday, Klopp promised that he would never manage another English club and suggested he may even retire as a manager completely.

He said: "If you ask me, 'Will you ever work as a manager again?' I would say now no. But I don't know obviously how that will feel because I never had the situation.

"What I know definitely – I will never, ever manage a different club in England than Liverpool."