Jurgen Klopp missed out on signing Jude Bellingham when he was in charge of Liverpool, but he could help RB Leipzig sign the England international’s younger brother Jobe
RB Leipzig are reportedly leading the race to sign Jude Bellingham’s brother Jobe, with former Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp overseeing the club’s dealings. Klopp has served as Red Bull’s head of global soccer since January, a role that sees him work with the raft of clubs owned by the energy drink company.
And Klopp could help Leipzig seal a deal for Bellingham, having previously fallen short in his attempts to sign his older brother Jude while at Liverpool. 19-year-old Jobe has impressed since joining Sunderland, with the midfielder playing a key role in the club’s promotion bid this season.
According to Sky Sports Germany, Leipzig are ‘seriously interested’ in the England Under-21 international and have ‘held initial talks’ over a deal. It is claimed that a summer move is ‘likely’, although Leipzig ‘consider the current package too expensive’.
As a result, it may be second time lucky for Klopp after Liverpool’s efforts to sign Jude failed during his time at Anfield. Liverpool were viewed as favourites in the race for his services at one time, with Conor Coady claiming Trent Alexander-Arnold and Jordan Henderson “man marked” Bellingham while at the 2022 World Cup with England.
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Klopp also spoke glowingly about the player after the tournament, stating: “I don’t like to talk about money when you talk about a player like him. Everyone can see he is just exceptional.
“If you mention to someone who has no clue about football, or who knows about football and has not watched it for a while (and ask) ‘How old do you think Jude Bellingham is?’, I don’t think anyone would get even close to his age.
“They would say 28 or 29 because he plays so maturely. He played an exceptional World Cup. Absolutely exceptional. With all the things he has and things he can improve, to describe him I would say the things he can do are difficult to learn, and the things he can improve are easy to learn.
“So, yes, he is a really good player. What can I say? I have thought that already for two or three years since he had his breakthrough at Dortmund. Everybody knew already but I have no idea what that means for the money side of it.
“I really think if we all want to do him a favour then we do not talk too much about money. I mean that from an England point of view. Do not throw any hurdles in his development.”
However, Bellingham ultimately ended up joining Real Madrid in 2023 after Klopp admitted Liverpool simply could not afford to sign him. “I never understood why we constantly talk about things we theoretically cannot have,” Klopp said.
“We cannot have six players in the summer for £100m [each], for example. That’s clear. You have to realise what you can do and then you have to work with that. How much money do we have available? Then we work with that. That’s the job you have to do.
“We are not children. You ask a five-year-old what they want for Christmas and they tell you, ‘I want a Ferrari’. You wouldn’t say ‘That’s a good idea’. You would say, ‘No, it’s too expensive and you cannot drive it’. And that’s how it is. If this kid spends their whole life unhappy because he cannot get a Ferrari then that would be a really sad life.”
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