‘Klopp has texted me that he will be watching’ – Dortmund CEO Watzke says football world focused on Bundesliga restart

Borussia Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke has said the club’s former manager Jurgen Klopp has been texting him consistently about the Bundesliga‘s impending return.

The German top-flight is set to become the first European league to return from its coronavirus suspension when it resumes play on Saturday.

With every other major league still paused, the eyes of the world will be on Germany this weekend and there will be one particularly keen observer in Liverpool. 

Klopp, who was in charge at Dortmund from 2008 to 2015 before moving on to Liverpool, has been in touch with his former boss about football’s return in his native country.

“Jurgen has texted me a few times that he will be watching TV at the weekend and everyone is happy that the game will start again,” Watzke told DAZN. “In England in particular, clubs are clinging to the fact that the Premier League can also start again soon.

“We owe the fact that we are in such a position in Germany to the population, who behaved in such a disciplined manner. And the politicians who are very careful with the situation. That is the reason why Germany is one of the best countries in the world to have come through this crisis.”

With Germany having restricted the coronavirus outbreak more effectively than England thus far, there have been major questions over if and when the Premier League will be able to resume play.

The UK government has cleared the Premier League to resume in June, but there are still plenty of issues to iron out before football can return. Several clubs have opposed a plan to play games at neutral venues, while plenty of players have expressed concerns over their safety.

Germany is set to become a testing ground for the rest of the world, and Watzke has admitted that the Bundesliga will be shouldering plenty of pressure in the coming weeks. 

“I also feel a huge responsibility,” Watzke said. “This feeling is bigger than ever, and that gives me a certain amount of tension.

“On the one hand, the sporting aspect is that we also achieve our goals. On the other hand, the question of whether we can meet the entire framework with all requirements and the security concept as we all imagine it and how it is necessary. This pressure is really huge.”