“A Great Player And An Even Better Person”

You’re a guy who both loves and is skilled and talented enough to play professional football. You excel in League One, scoring twenty goals for Southampton during the 2009/10 season. You experience the elation of promotion. You lead and contribute to your club’s push through The Championship in a single season, gaining immediate entrance to the big dance. You become Southampton captain. You excel in the Premier League as a key figure for your team. Then the big boys start to ring you up. Now, you’re a guy staring at very exciting offers for very exciting money to play your professional football. You make a huge move to Liverpool to work with Brendan Rodgers, to work with top players. Then, yada yada yada, you’re a guy playing his professional football at a world renowned club, for a world renowned manager and continuing to excel.

But Jürgen Klopp is going to tell you that he’s the lucky one because you’re an absolute dream. He then offers you a new contract to play for Liverpool through your peak years. Well done, you’re Adam Lallana, and you’re officially doing it.

“This is fantastic news for the club,” Klopp said, speaking of Lallana’s contract, “because Adam is a great player and an even better person. I am so pleased that we will spend more time together now and have this common future with LFC trying to be successful here.”

It’s a nice sentiment from the Liverpool manager, the ‘common future’ concept. It speaks to Klopp’s joy for the game and for his team. And just how highly the manager values Adam Lallana’s contribution to what the Reds are doing now.

“Adam is a natural leader,” said Klopp, “and is so, so important within our team and also in the dressing room. Maybe on the outside his leadership is not seen as much as we see it each and every day at Melwood in everything he does.”

Klopp has been eager to secure Lallana’s place at the club through his peak years because the manager sees all that Adam is: quality on the pitch, quality off the pitch as well as a quality mentor for the budding pros working their way up.

“He has his very best years ahead of him and they will be at LFC,” said Klopp.

“Our younger players will now be able to benefit from watching, listening and learning from him for an even longer period because he sets the perfect example each and every day.”

Lallana’s story will be a great inspiration to many young players. He rose from below and has not settled or become complacent since. As far as Jürgen Klopp is concerned there’s much and more left for the player to achieve. And isn’t it just peachy that he’ll do it in a Liverpool shirt.