It might be something you’ve forgotten, with players moving all over the place every single year, but there was a brief period in 2009 when Kevin-Prince Boateng played for Borussia Dortmund.
He was only there six months, on loan from Tottenham, and the attacking midfielder made just 11 appearances without scoring a goal, but it’s a period he’ll always cherish, mostly thanks to Jürgen Klopp.
Now at Sassuolo, where he’s adapted to a centre-forward role, the 31-year-old gave an interview to Gazzetta dello Sport, discussing why the now Liverpool manager was so important to not just his career, but himself as a person.
He said: “At that moment, I needed a motivator, someone who would talk to me in a tough manner, just like a father would, and he destroys you.”
Boateng joins the long-list of footballers who only have good things to say about Jürgen Klopp, as the Liverpool manager often creates a family atmosphere at his clubs, unifying them, which then shows on the pitch with gut busting performances.
For the former Ghana international, his spell at Dortmund marked the end of his time at Tottenham, sold to Portsmouth during the summer of 2009, which would kick off his tumultuous journey through European football.
Spells at Genoa, Milan, Schalke, UD Las Palmas and Eintracht Frankfurt then ensued, leading to his current club, Sassuolo, where he has scored three goals and picked up an assist in his first four games of the season.
