I signed for Liverpool four months before Jurgen Klopp joined – this is what the mood was like

A Liverpool goalkeeper has recalled the gloomy mood around Anfield in the final days of Brendan Rodgers’ tenure.

Having gone agonisingly close to winning the title in 2013/14, the Reds were woeful the following campaign, finishing a lowly eighth, 21 points behind shock champions Leicester City. Adam Bogdan arrived from Bolton Wanderers that summer and immediately sensed an air of despondency around the club.

“A year before I joined, they almost won the league, but then the following season wasn't so good,” the Hungarian exclusively told Ladbrokes Fanzone. “When I came in, it was the same summer as Steven Gerrard leaving the club, which – of course – was huge for the supporters to deal with.

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“So, the atmosphere, to be honest, wasn't great. I know what that stadium is like on its best days, but it just wasn't the case around the time of my arrival.

“You could feel the frustration around the place, about the playing style, the results, the manner in which we were conceding goals. It was hard.”

Therefore, when Rodgers was sacked in the aftermath of a 1-1 draw in the Merseyside derby, Bogdan wasn’t the least bit surprised. He added: “On that day when Brendan Rodgers lost his job, I know everyone thinks of that moment where Jamie Carragher is surprised in the [Sky Sports] studio.

“But it didn't really surprise me at the time, if I'm being honest. You could feel that something wasn't quite right between the fans, the players and the management.”

The mood around the club soon picked up when Jurgen Klopp was appointed a few weeks later. Bogdan said: “And then Jurgen Klopp comes in. He's just this normal guy.

“He speaks really well, and his intensity was higher than we'd previously experienced, right from the start. He demanded so much from us.

“Jurgen Klopp wanted to do something else, you know it as 'heavy metal football', which basically meant causing chaos by pressing high, not worrying about what's behind you, but attacking the opposition on the ball, with everyone behind you following.

‌“He was really positive with the goalkeepers as well. We'd conceded a few goals, which just weren't good, and while he'd acknowledge that, he'd also identify multiple occasions where several things had happened in the build-up which could have been avoided, before the goals were conceded.”