'Shut up' - Jurgen Klopp lost his cool with James Milner in tense moment

Former Liverpool midfielder James Milner has disclosed how Jurgen Klopp once told him to "shut the f--- up" during a heated half-time exchange at Anfield

Jurgen Klopp once lost his temper with James Milner(Image: Getty Images)

James Milner once incurred the wrath of former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp in the dressing room.

Milner proved himself a model professional throughout his eight-year stint at Anfield, spanning from 2015 to 2023. The versatile midfielder featured in numerous roles and continually upheld his exceptional standards, routinely leading Liverpool's yearly pre-season lactate test well into his 30s.

Unsurprisingly, this established him as one of Klopp's most reliable and valued players, with the German having joined the club merely four months following the Englishman's arrival. Nevertheless, there was one peculiar instance when Milner found himself among those on the receiving end of a dressing-down from the tactical mastermind.

Milner, now 40 and still turning out for Brighton, disclosed on the High Performance podcast in 2023 how he triggered Klopp's ire in the changing room during a half-time team talk.

"He was pretty good most of the time, he was open," said Milner. "Maybe not at half-time, we had one occasion where he was sharing his thoughts and I was sharing mine."

Recalling Klopp's six-word response during the confrontation, he continued: "I remember him smashing his hands down on the table like, 'Will you shut the f--- up?'

James Milner was Jurgen Klopp's vice-captain at Liverpool(Image: Getty Images)

"But Jurgen was brilliant. I had a great relationship with him, off the field as well, he supported our charity (the James Milner Foundation) as well, so much."

Milner, who has now overtaken Gareth Barry to become the Premier League's all-time appearance record holder, went on to describe what set Klopp apart as an outstanding manager. This was before his 2024 departure, when he assumed the position of Red Bull's Head of Global Soccer.

He added: "An amazing manager. I always felt like most of the time he was open and even if he didn't feel like the conversation, he gave you stuff back so you felt like he'd thought about it afterwards. Even if he didn't tell you that, you'd see it with things he did after and I felt like he was good at taking things on board.

"He's a leader, he makes the decisions, but if you've put something in his head and it's helped, he was pretty good at listening to things like that, I saw him change a lot in the time I was there."

Milner is even considering following Klopp's trajectory once he ultimately hangs up his boots. Though he received some vital advice from his former boss before pursuing coaching.

"I've done my badges and things like that," Milner told talkSPORT. "Some days I think it's a really good idea, other days you see people getting a new contract and managers getting sacked six weeks later. That doesn't look too appealing.

"You see the stress those guys have and the amount of media they have to do and the responsibility they take on, it is a very difficult job which, again, it does appeal to me because it is so difficult. It is something you think, 'I could do that, I'll show you.'

"Jurgen Klopp always said to me that whenever you finish, it's important you have a rest when you've been 100 miles an hour for as long as I have. So I think whenever that happens, that will be the first port of call and we'll see where we go from there."