Jurgen Klopp take on FSG strategy and private arguments in candid interview before Liverpool exit

Jurgen Klopp has defended owners Fenway Sports Group's level of transfer investment during his time at Liverpool, insisting: "That is what the people believe in."

FSG's 14-year tenure has seen the club run with a strictly self-sustaining model that sees them only reinvest what is earned and since Klopp's arrival as manager in October 2015, the Reds' net spent sits at £376m, which works out at under £50m per year.

That figure places Liverpool in seventh for spending during that time frame with Newcastle United, Tottenham, Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea all above Klopp's side since he became manager nearly nine years ago.

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The business model has attracted criticism at times from certain sections of the club's worldwide fanbase, particularly when injuries have hit the squad hard, but Klopp says the way of working is ideal for how Liverpool and their Boston-based owners wish to operate.

In an in-depth chat with a handful of publications including the ECHO ahead of his final match in charge at home to Wolves this weekend, Klopp opened up on his thoughts on FSG's strategy and claimed any disagreements were always kept firmly in-house.

"I think you could buy into it but (people say) 'they didn't back him enough' and stuff like that but I never saw it that way," Klopp said. "I don't know if they could have done more but I don't think so because we had these discussions and I never had them in public.

"I didn't want to bring this feeling to the outside world that we are not united. If we had an argument it was internal and on the outside we say it's our way and that is how we do it. I don't know any other way.

"If it would help to invite the public into the discussions I would try but it doesn't help. If my son asked me for 50 euros and I only had 25 to give, what can I do? Besides just give him the 25. I really thought for us that I understood that it was our way, the Liverpool way.

"We do things properly, the right way. We don't do a lot of things that others do, we don't overspend and we always spent what we earned on the team or the stand or this building. This is a healthy club and to do that on our level... you could argue Barcelona is not healthy but they are still up there but I couldn't see this being a Liverpool thing. I just don't see that.

"Or other clubs with massive money, they try things, we need to do it this way because that is what the people believe in, historically. They are [political] lefties, rather educated by Bill Shankly. Most of us don't know him of course but it is always around so you cannot just change this now. The younger faction might be like that just 'who cares?'

"But the older people from 30-upwards understand it like that and we always did that. And the way we did it, we were unlucky in moments and maybe not good enough in moments to win three Premier Leagues and three Champions Leagues."

The Reds manager, who leaves having lifted eight trophies including a first league title for 30 years, a sixth European Cup and a first-ever Club World Cup, also revealed his thinking upon his arrival on Merseyside, when he inherited a confidence-shot squad that needed plenty of fine tuning.

Klopp added: "In the few days before first press conference I had been talking to people about why they changed from Brendan Rodgers to me, what happened in not becoming champions in 2014 and what it meant being so close. I realised everyone was doubting what Liverpool does and no-one liked the team. Even the team didn’t like the team!

"That was really the case. You could see it. The players were not comfortable in their skin. It was not like they were thinking, ‘we are in the right place’. They had signed for Liverpool and found it difficult to catch-up with the expectation of the people. That was clear talking to Ian Ayre, John Henry, Mike Gordon, (former head of press) Matt McCann, they were the first people I met at the club.

"The four years comment was, not exactly to buy time, but I know how football works. If you do not go where people want you to go early enough then it will not happen. What I actually meant to say was (if we do not win a trophy) you will need a coach from Switzerland. Either way, it was b*******! It was more that you will have to try with somebody else.

"The people had lost patience long enough and wanted to see something they could believe in again and obviously coincidentally, or maybe not because every football fan likes it, but you have to increase the work rate. It's not that the players didn't work hard enough but you have to fight for something really want. There are things for playing a football game. One is reactive and the other is proactive.

"And reactive is just always too late even when the running stats say you have run 125k or whatever and then you think 'how did that happen?' So it is always about a positive approach and what I liked a lot because I could see it with the players early on was the Tottenham game (October 2015), it was a super intense game and we'd only had two training sessions as we'd only just come back from the international break. The players wanted to do well as well so we just tired.

"Simon Mignolet made a few saves but it was one of the better nil-nils, let me say it like this. So that was the start I needed to see and learn a bit about the character of the boys. And a football club like Liverpool FC, people want to buy into a project and a journey.

"I think you could they everyone was ready for it. I think it was would have happened to most other managers to be honest because it was 24 years, Brendan tried again, people weren't happy so they made a change and it was a moment for a new start and that's what it was, but it needed time. We qualified for the Champions League and the Europa League was not bad.

"Rubin Kazan we played, Jordon Ibe scored, we played in Sion on the frozen pitch. I learned about a day before that we had Brad Smith and he stood right next to me in training and it was too embarrassing to ask him who he was so I had to ask someone else! They told me he's our left-back.

"Interesting. We had so many injuries, I came here and all these things happen to Danny Ings, Joe Gomez and we had to play Conor Randall, he's in Scotland now isn't he? Shamal George was in the training group too but we came through.

"The highlight was the Dortmund game and Villarreal was a semi-final too. We learned to play good football and it was a good team. It was not the best team in the league like everyone wants but it was a good team. I arrived here I had five strikers, I never had that before. Ings, Sturridge, great player but injured too often, Divock Origi, Benteke and Bobby Firmino. That is really good.

"Phil Coutinho too. Last line was a bit too slow. It's difficult to play a high line but we had Kolo Toure, we had quality, just for not how we want to play. Dejan Lovren was a good age, incredible skill set played a lot of great games for us. So it was good just maybe not enough to go for the big prizes. We had to change it step by step."

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