What could save Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool career, Newcastle’s ownership, why I feel sorry for match-going fans and more…

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In his 11th exclusive column for CaughtOffside, Jon Smith, one of football’s first-ever agents and a man who was an integral figure in the forming of the Premier League, discusses Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool future, VAR’s current format, Newcastle United’s ownership and more…

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The World Cup break could save Jurgen Klopp…

I’m a big fan of Jurgen Klopp.

I think he’s done a remarkable job at Liverpool. I love his football – that high press, the high energy. I think it’s great from a fan’s perspective, but it is interesting how similar he is to Jose Mourinho though. They both build these superb teams and then it sort of dissipates after a few seasons and I’m not quite sure why. Maybe they have a system that works but when the other clubs work it out, they struggle to adapt.

Nevertheless, I find it incredible that we’re even talking about Klopp’s position because of how successful he’s been. If I was a Liverpool fan, I’d be delighted but they’re not happy. They’re protesting, admittedly not against Klopp, they’re angry with the owners, but I wonder how long it’ll be until the “FSG out” calls turn into “Klopp out” calls.

I think when it comes to the prospect of him losing his job, I think the one thing that’ll save him, even if they lose to Spurs next weekend, will be the break for the World Cup. Those few weeks will buy him a little bit of time to try and turn it around, but in the meantime, I urge fans to stick by him and be supportive because he really is a good guy and I can’t think of anyone who could come in and do a better job.

VAR: I feel sorry for the fans in the stadium…

Firstly – I think VAR is a good step and it can be a success, but I’m not sure why we can’t have a situation like we have in cricket where there is a sort of replay of what the officials are looking at.

Sure, the viewers at home have that luxury, but for the fans in the stadium, they’re just stuck in limbo for three or four minutes, sometimes longer, and that’s not fair.

The leagues really do need to try and fill that gap. In a way, I also feel sorry for the match referee, because no matter what, they’re never going to be able to keep up with super fit athletes so while they do need support, VAR in its current format is actually making their job harder.

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Let’s not be hypocrites when it comes to Newcastle United’s ownership…

I do feel there is a little bit of hypocrisy when it comes to Newcastle United’s ownership.

When Wolves came up from the Championship, everyone was applauding them, but they were under Chinese ownership and let’s be fair – China is a persecuting nation and one that isn’t very fond of other demographics, and yet, no one said a word.

Admittedly, the Saudis do not have the ideal society. In fact, there’s a lot wrong with it, in my opinion, but if you’re going to start banning certain people and worrying about the emotional validity of investment then most of the money in sport is going to have to be reviewed.

The EFL is set for some major changes…

What I have been saying about the EFL’s financial worries has now been made official. Chairman Rick Parry has recently spoken publicly about the problems the pyramid faces.

The EFL are asking the Premier League to increase how much of their revenue is shared. They want it raised from 15 per cent to around 25 per cent and I really can’t see that happening. The UK Government have also already said they can’t help, so the EFL’s future is very uncertain, to say the least.

There will obviously be ongoing discussions but I think what’s going to happen is the Government will stay out of it and the Premier League will keep saying “why should we give you a quarter of our revenue?”

So if those things do happen, it’s inevitable that the structure of the EFL will change and I wouldn’t be surprised if the majority of the clubs in League One and Two are forced to go part-time and should that happen, before you know it, we’ll have a ‘Super League’ in the form of the Premier League by default. It’s going to be very interesting to see how football changes over the next few years.

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