Liverpool FC News
Red Bull Salzburg answers DEMANDED as Pep Lijnders’ tenure falls apart
When Jurgen Klopp left Liverpool at the end of last season, the future looked so bright for his assistant Pep Lijnders.
Whilst no one pretended Liverpool’s success was anything other than Jurgen Klopp’s achievement, there was rightful acknowledgement that the implementation of such a successful system would be impossible without a masterful backroom staff.
Lijnders was on top of this. As a result, a move to head coach at Red Bull Salzburg – who had won the Austrian league 10 straight times between 2013-14 and 2022-23 – seemed like the right move for Lijnders.
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And it started so well; three straight wins to start the league season and qualification for the Champions League,as was expected. But then the wheels fell off.
Only two wins from seven games following this – one being over third division side Wiener Viktoria in the cup – has left the Austrian press demanding answers from Lijnders.
None of these results have been worse than the weekend’s 5-0 defeat to Sturm Graz. Graz were the side to break Salzburg’s title dominance last season and are the team Salzburg need to beat.
This followed a 4-0 humiliation by French side Brest in the Champions League, leaving Lijnders 9-0 down over his side’s last two outings.
What are the Austrian press saying?
Sebastian Steinbichler, editor of Austria’s largest newspaper Krone, wrote in a comment piece this week that Lijnders’ smile “has become increasingly rare in public”, calling the Sturm Graz result a “humiliation”.
He went on to compare Lijnders press conference answers to “the situation at the police station”, writing that, “The questions have the upper hand, there are few or no answers. But it is high time to provide them.”
The press further suggest that basic elements like cohesion, enthusiasm and passion are missing from the team, and that it’s “important to find out what part Lijnders himself has played in this”.
The international break will provide Lijnders another moment to reassess the issues in his team. But with fixtures against the bottom two sides in the league coming by the start of November, a failure to fix this form will almost certainly see the former Liverpool man out of a job.




I’m Thomas Clark, from the ever-sunny Scottsdale, Arizona. At 47, my life’s not your usual nine-to-five grind; I’m the voice behind the screen at FC Soccer News. My days are a mix of passion and professionalism as I weave words for the love of the game. University of Arizona’s where I honed my skills, but the real education came from the hours spent in local cafes, my eyes glued to my laptop, and my mind playing the field.
Soccer’s not just my beat—it’s the rhythm to my life. I analyze plays with a tactical mind and share insights that cut through the noise. Outside work, my appetite for adventure is as strong as a striker’s kick. The chef in me loves experimenting in the kitchen, and when the hiking trails call my name, I answer with boots laced tight. I’ve got music in my bones, and you’ll often find me lost in the melodies of a well-strummed guitar.
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