Portugal Colonial - Klopp insists Liverpool 'stable' despite shock of his exit

Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold have 18 months left to run on their contracts and captain Van Dijk raised alarm bells when the Dutchman said he was "curious which direction the club will go" once Klopp leaves.

"It's completely normal," said Klopp at his pre-match press conference ahead of Wednesday's Premier League clash against Chelsea.

"A week ago no one knew about my situation. There was still 18 months on their contracts and no one asked, so give us a break. No one has to worry.

"Write what you want, the club is stable. Everything will be fine, I'm 100 percent sure. I would recommend to stay calm. Very often the fans' concerns are not as big as you might think. You underestimate the intelligence of our supporters."

Klopp revealed on Friday that he had told the club two months ago of his plans to leave but that it would have been a show of bad faith to try and tie players down to longer deals before announcing the news publicly.

"You cannot work like that, especially not with the relationship we have. There is enough time to do everything," he added.

"These players love to be here, I know that for a fact, don't forget that. It is not that they have one foot out. They want to know a little bit of perspective but that will happen, especially behind the scenes."

Liverpool could give Klopp an unforgettable send off as they lead the Premier League by five points and are still in the running for trophies in the League Cup, FA Cup and Europa League.

But Klopp insisted there was no rush Salah back from a hamstring injury he suffered with Egpyt at the Africa Cup of Nations.

"There was no pressure on him other than wanting to get fit as quickly as possible anyway. But we don't rush," said Klopp.

"You do what you can do and, whilst that happens, we have to wait. Mo’s not ready for this game or the next. He’s injured and a muscle injury takes time."

T.Resende--PC