BERLIN, April 17- Borussia Dortmund’s want-away coach Jurgen Klopp is refusing to listen to any talk of his future in the English Premier League and concentrating instead on his last few matches.
Having won the 2011 and 2012 Bundesliga titles, then finishing runners-up to Bayern in the last two seasons, Klopp dropped a bombshell on Wednesday by revealing he would quit Dortmund at the end of the season after seven years.
Ex-Mainz boss Thomas Tuchel is tipped to take over at Borussia for next season while Klopp has been linked to several Premier League sides including Manchester City and Arsenal.
The Gunners’ ex-Germany defender Per Mertesacker has said Klopp would do well in the Premier League, while ex-England internationals Paul Scholes and Gary Lineker have said they want to see Klopp coach in England.
The 47-year-old wants to bow out by lifting one last trophy with Dortmund still in the hunt for the German Cup where they face holders Bayern Munich away in the semi-finals on April 28.
Second-half goals by Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Shinji Kagawa sealed Dortmund’s 3-0 league win over relegation-threatened Paderborn on Saturday which left them eighth and just outside the Europa League places.
But after his first match since his announcement, Klopp insists he has given no thought to his future.
“I have had no time to think about it and at the moment, it’s really not important,” Klopp told Sky Sports.
“I want to finish things here first.
“Everything is possible.
“It could be that nothing happens and we take a year off.
“We’ll go as a three-man coaching complete coaching team (along with assistants Zeljko Buvac and Peter Krawietz), but right now, no-one knows what will happen in the next year.”
With his quick-wit and designer stubble, the charismstaic Klopp has earned cult status at Dortmund.
He received a standing ovation late in the Paderborn game at Dortmund’s sold-out 80,667-capacity stadium, but he insists there is no time for sentimentality in the hunt for a Europa League berth.
“I think it’s really good that people here have focused on the football,” he said.
“It was all about the team playing well in a great atmosphere, it was nice (to get the standing ovation), but as a person, I can’t go through that every week.
“It will be a really emotional time during the next few weeks, but until then I will have to wear my armour, so to speak, because this is all about football.
“When things like that happen, I can’t allow myself to pay too much attention, instead I have to try and ignore it.”
