James Milner reveals heated dressing room clash with Jurgen Klopp after an ex-Liverpool defender claimed the pair nearly fought in the dressing room in 2017

• James Milner left Liverpool in the summer after eight seasons at the club 
• Milner revealed his relationship and admiration for Reds boss Jurgen Klopp 
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• James Milner has admitted Jurgen Klopp once had a furious exchange with him in the dressing room during his eight-year Liverpool career.

  Milner left the Reds in the summer after a trophy-laden spell, lifting the Champions League, Premier League, FA Cup and Carabao Cup on his time on Merseyside.

  The 37-year-old, who served as Liverpool’s vice-captain, revealed Klopp was largely prepared to receive feedback from players during his time at the club.

• Milner admitted this did not typically extend to half-time, as he revealed Klopp had once reacting angrily when he was attempting to share his thoughts in the dressing room.

  ‘He was pretty good, he was open,’ Milner told the High Performance Podcast. ‘Maybe not at half-time.

  ‘We had one moment where he was sharing his thoughts and I was sharing mine and I remember him smashing his hands on down the table and shouting, “Will you shut the f*** up”

  ‘But Jurgen was brilliant, we had a great relationship, a great man off the field and supported our charity so much.

  ‘An amazing manager and I felt most of the time he was open and even if you didn’t feel like it in the conversation he gave you stuff back.

  ‘I felt like he thought about it afterwards. I felt he was good at taking it on board. I saw him change a lot in the time I was there.’

  Former Liverpool centre back Ragnar Klavan had previously claimed Klopp and Milner had once come close to having a fight in the dressing room following a match in 2017.

  Klavan had claimed in 2021 that the pair had nearly come to blows after Liverpool’s 2-2 draw away against Sunderland, as two Jermain Defoe penalties cancelled out goals from Daniel Sturridge and Sadio Mane.

  ‘Klopp and James Milner almost started a physical fight. It was the period when there was Boxing Day in England and they almost started fighting but eventually Milner stepped back,’ Klavan said.

  ‘We saw from his eyes that Klopp would have gone all the way just to prove his point. It was the most stressful time for him as well. He was under a lot of pressure.

  

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  Former Liverpool defender Ragnar Klavan previously claimed Klopp and Milner nearly had a fight in the dressing room

  ‘It was my first and Klopp’s second year. What are you going to do? You’re supposed to be a good coach. You are Jurgen Klopp who will make superstars of all players. The pressure started getting to him.

  ‘It’s not supposed to be easy, but if you don’t deliver against a team like Sunderland, then you can forget about the places you had hoped for.’

  Klopp had played down the incident when asked about Klavan’s comments.

  ‘Everybody knows how I look when I speak or shout; it looks quite aggressive without being aggressive. Maybe Ragnar was not used to that yet,’ Klopp said in 2021.

  ‘It was nothing. James Milner would never do that and I would never do that. It’s all fine.’

  Klopp had hailed Milner’s mentality after his departure in the summer after 332 games for the club, before he joined Brighton on a free transfer.

  ‘I don’t want to underestimate Milly’s quality but this mentality he has, the way he comes into the game. Oh, my God. Whoever comes in next, he has set a really high bar,’ Klopp said.

  ‘How many games has he won for us in this way.’