Report: Oxlade-Chamberlain Admits Klopp Was a Major Reason for Liverpool Move

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's football career has taken him from Southampton, to Arsenal and now Liverpool, and the 24-year-old has admitted that he was convinced to move to Anfield this summer to play under Jurgen Klopp and follow in Steven Gerrard's footsteps.

With his career seemingly coming to a crossroad in the summer, the England international made the decision to start over at a new club and he has revealed that the intensity of Klopp's system was a major reason for the switch, as it would be a kick up the backside which he desperately needed. 

When discussing his reasons for switching North London for Merseyside, Klopp was quickly brought into the equation as Oxlade-Chamberlain told the Times: “Having been someone on the outside looking in, I couldn’t help but notice what the manager [Klopp] is doing here, and wondering what it would be like to play for a character like that. 

"He’s very inspirational, passionate, involved and intense. I felt that was something that could gee me up. You can see from how the team play how he instils that intensity in the players. I feel like that kick up the backside would be good for me.

"Just meeting the manager [at Melwood on Wednesday] for the first time reinforced that. I could tell straight away he’s very warm, very close to the players.

“The manager can take me up to the next level — I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t believe that. He sees a lot of good things in me, but he also sees areas that he believes he can push me and develop. That excites me.

"The main reason I came here was the understanding I’d be playing further up the pitch and in a more attacking role, and more opportunities centrally to express that. I wouldn’t say central midfield, I’d say an attacking midfielder.

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The 24-year-old is also an admirer of one of Liverpool's greatest players of all time, who he looked up to as a young footballer, and now he gets the opportunity to live out a childhood dream.

He added: “When I really started to take a massive interest in football [as a teenager], I was playing centre mid and was told to learn from people in my position at the top of the game, so Stevie [Gerrard] was the one I used to watch.

“Stevie was one of the most exciting players to watch, attacking-wise, and he could pass, but at the same time he had that passion, he could tackle. That was one of my dreams, to play like him. I used to love Thierry Henry, one of my idols as well, but I knew I wouldn’t be a striker so I wanted to be Stevie G.

Oxlade-Chamberlain also revealed it wasn't just Gerrard who played a role in his move to Liverpool, as he said: “When I was with England with Stevie we touched on Liverpool but Jordan [Henderson] is the one who most talked about Liverpool. 

"For five years, he’s kept telling me that I need to come to Liverpool because he was enjoying it so much and he feels I’d fit in, and the club would get the best out of me. This week it’s come true,” he added.