Oliver Kahn questions Jürgen Klopp’s criticism of Vincent Kompany

Kahn says Klopp’s comments sounded like punditry

Oliver Kahn has questioned Jürgen Klopp’s public assessment of Vincent Kompany’s Bayern Munich tactics, saying he was surprised by the Germany coach’s remarks after Bayern’s 2-2 draw with Arsenal on Wednesday.

Klopp had questioned aspects of Kompany’s approach, including Bayern’s defensive structure and Harry Kane’s role. Speaking to Sky Germany, former Bayern chief executive Kahn said the comments sounded more like those of a television analyst than a national-team coach.

“I first had to think about whether he was the national team coach or still a football pundit,” Kahn said. “What he said was a typical football pundit’s comment, one that could naturally also be interpreted as criticism of a club coach.”

Kahn linked the latest remarks to Klopp’s earlier comments about Julian Nagelsmann during the World Cup. Klopp had said Nagelsmann was “still picking the team,” prompting questions about the Germany coach’s position. Klopp later acknowledged that he had made a mistake and apologized to Nagelsmann.

“I think this is also about collegiality among coaches,” Kahn said, adding that a national-team coach “needs to be very careful about what he says.” He said such comments could lead to the kind of public debate now taking place.

“I was surprised by his comments, because that is not something you would normally expect from a national team coach.”