Jurgen Klopp addressed the reports that Jorg Schmadtke will become Liverpool’s new sporting director in his pre-Aston Villa press conference. He praised Schmadtke, saying “he’s a smart guy” and that he knows him “from a few moments next to the pitch.” Klopp noted that he and Schmadtke started their second career at a similar moment, and that he knows him “much better” than Schmadtke knows him. However, Klopp also name-dropped Borussia Dortmund’s former sporting director, Michael Zorc, to emphasize that his positive comments about Schmadtke do not necessarily mean that he will join the Reds. He concluded by saying that there are “some good sporting directors in Germany” and that his comments will only add fuel to the notion that the pair could work well together.