‘He is a family’ – Ex-Liverpool ace adores Klopp despite only playing once under Anfield boss

Arthur Melo has said that, while he found his time at Liverpool ‘mentally very hard’, he’s nothing but kind words for Jurgen Klopp.

The Brazilian midfielder joined on loan from Juventus at the end of the summer 2022 transfer window but endured horrendously bad luck, with injuries and other setbacks limiting him to one solitary 13-minute appearance for the Reds (Transfermarkt).

He was speaking to the print edition of Spanish outlet AS as he reflected on the hapless spell at Anfield and the joy of working under the 56-year-old.

Arthur said (via Sport Witness): “I was really looking forward to playing in a different championship. Everything was going very well in a great team, but in training I had an injury… It was hard, mentally very hard.”

The 27-year-old added: “Liverpool has surprised me a lot. The fans are incredible, but within the club everything has Klopp’s face. He is a family. There is always someone who wants to help others, from the first worker to the president. Klopp as a coach is fantastic and how he manages the team is impressive.”

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Arthur’s glowing praise for Klopp says so much about what it must be like to work with the Liverpool manager.

Given everything that went against the Brazilian midfielder at Anfield, it would’ve been easy for him to feel bitter about the Merseyside club and complain that, amid the injury troubles, he’d have wanted more of a chance under the German.

Instead, he’s given one of the best character references imaginable about the 56-year-old, for whom it must be quite the privilege to play, no matter how briefly.

Now on loan at Fiorentina, Arthur is having a much better run of luck, already cementing himself as a regular starter under Vincenzo Italiano as he seeks to make up for lost time (Transfermarkt).

If the 27-year-old ever ends up playing in opposition to Klopp’s Liverpool in the future, we can expect an incredibly warm exchange between the two, and indeed from former teammates among whom he was reportedly very popular (The Athletic).

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