Topic: Pep Lijnders

[Nobby Reserve]

Best of luck, Pep. And lovely parting words.

[Dougle]

Best of luck to him and you never know, we might see him back here in years to come.

[Crimson_Tank]

Best of luck to Pep, thank you for the coaching and guidance for our youth.

[BabuYagu]

Little update after about 6 weeks in his new job.

Played 7, Won 3 (all home), Lost 4 (all away).

NEC are still top (joint) but results are sliding in the wrong direction and their last game was a 4-1 defeat to a side in the bottom 6.

PPG pre Ljinders = 2,22
PPG with Ljinders = 1,29

They were the dutch side I used to support back when I watched the Eredivisie so I'll be keeping tabs on them for the final few months of the season and will keep you all posted.

[Giono]

Obrigado. Do you know if their style of playing changed at all under him? I am curious how he makes the shift from coaching to managing. I would expect his impact to not be instant, but rather longer term.

[BabuYagu]

Obrigado. Do you know if their style of playing changed at all under him? I am curious how he makes the shift from coaching to managing. I would expect his impact to not be instant, but rather longer term.

I haven't seen any of the games, all I can tell is they have moved from a 4-2-1-3 shape to the shape Klopp used last season - the 4-1-2-3 - for the last game only.

I would also agree that hiring a coach like Pep would be a long term thing as he is more about coaching players and fundamentally changing things at the club than the short term bounce you get from a motivator coming in.

Not many coaches succeed in their first managerial appointments though. Looks at Rodgers when he moved from youth coach to manager before the Swansea job for example.

[Giono]

I haven't seen any of the games, all I can tell is they have moved from a 4-2-1-3 shape to the shape Klopp used last season - the 4-1-2-3 - for the last game only.

I would also agree that hiring a coach like Pep would be a long term thing as he is more about coaching players and fundamentally changing things at the club than the short term bounce you get from a motivator coming in.

Not many coaches succeed in their first managerial appointments though. Looks at Rodgers when he moved from youth coach to manager before the Swansea job for example.

Thanks. Hope he gets the time, being in the lower tier in the Netherlands. It seemed to me that he was aiming a bit low for his first gig. But maybe this job will give him the time to improve plsyers and make a mistake or two. Heck, even the Championship in England is giving managers less and less time.

[BabuYagu]

Thanks. Hope he gets the time, being in the lower tier in the Netherlands. It seemed to me that he was aiming a bit low for his first gig. But maybe this job will give him the time to improve plsyers and make a mistake or two. Heck, even the Championship in England is giving managers less and less time.

Agreed. Reckon if he had that record at QPR he would have been binned already

[Suareznumber7]

Seems Pep has left NEC Nijmegen as they failed to gain promotion.  Wonder if we’ll be seeing him back alongside Klopp next year. 

https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/former-liverpool-coach-back-market-14668966

[BabuYagu]

Seems Pep has left NEC Nijmegen as they failed to gain promotion.  Wonder if we’ll be seeing him back alongside Klopp next year. 

https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/former-liverpool-coach-back-market-14668966

Hopefully. When he joined I believe they were top of the league there too with a sizeable lead.

[Suareznumber7]

Hopefully. When he joined I believe they were top of the league there too with a sizeable lead.

I guess there’s a few different variables that would have to be taken into account.  Does Pep want to try his hand at management straight away (assuming he’s offered another job)?  And, what role would he have on Klopp’s staff?  If as his #2 he might take that opportunity but would he want the same role that he previously had before he left?

[Lemieux]

It's strange he always struck me as having a great brain for the game, but not necessarily great at the people side his interviews were always a little too analytical.  Obviously just assuming here who knows, hope he finds another opportunity though.

[classycarra]

Seems Pep has left NEC Nijmegen as they failed to gain promotion.  Wonder if we’ll be seeing him back alongside Klopp next year. 

https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/former-liverpool-coach-back-market-14668966

Not majorly surprised by this. I had a concern this might happen for him, and thought it might be taking a big job too soon (and at the wrong moment in the season)

Doubt he'd want it, but is Stevie's job still vacant?

[Lone Star Red]

Some insight into his short stint at manager from a local reporter. A little choppy due to the translation feature.

https://pastebin.com/DbVBTKHi

The failed mission of Pepijn Lijnders
Pieter Zwart By:
Pieter Zwart @PieterZwartNL
RECONSTRUCTION
NEC surprised the football world in January by replacing trainer Adrie Bogers with the Dutch assistant of Jürgen Klopp. Pepijn Lijnders (35) came, saw and lost the fight for promotion. How a youthful coach became the victim of his own ambitions, with a departure in mutual consultation as a result.
 
De Goffert tastes against FC Emmen how it is to play heavy metal football. NEC looks for aggression with aggression, chases Emmen over the entire field and dominates the chaotic race. That this type of football was not the rule during this hectic season, appears as Lijnders at a 4-1 score, the seventeen-year-old attacker Ole Romeny to the side and defender Guus Joppen brings in front of him in the field. Directly the Lijnder sounds rotten from the stands. That the switch is born from fatigue of Romeny and leads to a more attacking field occupation, is no longer relevant. The bond between trainer and audience, always referred to by Lijnders as 'a kind of family', is too damaged for that.
 
After all, the most curious trainers change in years turns out not to be a success. If the club management of NEC decides to make Adrie Bogers assistant in January and give Lijnders his first job as head coach, the team from Nijmegen will play two points behind leader Fortuna Sittard with a match less played. The team is in full shape, has only lost twice during the first half of the season and conquers a ticket for the playoffs in the first period.
 
Nevertheless, the appointment of Lijnders initially creates enthusiasm. After missing out on the World Cup and the disastrous performance of Dutch clubs in Europe, the call for innovation sounds louder. That is exactly what Lijnders promises. He is the youngest coach in Dutch professional football and satisfies the profile of what in Germany is scornfully called the laptop trainer. As a result of a serious injury, Lijnders quickly stops working as an active football player and, prior to his appointment in Nijmegen, has gained seventeen years of experience at PSV, FC Porto and Liverpool.
 
Due to the flying restart of NEC, the expectations for Lijnders are increasing still further. In an exhibition game, the Nijmegen-squad Eintracht Braunschweig, which plays in the Second Bundesliga, crushes 4-0. Afterwards, the men of Lijnders take 5-1 away at his official debut Go Ahead Eagles. The Lijnders NEC train is already at top speed, which proves to be a spectacular crash.

THE FALL
With the knowledge of today, Lijnders thinks to understand where things went wrong. During the training camp in Marbella he transfers his new group with information. The board has asked him to prepare NEC with an attractive playing style for the Premier League. A project that is focused on the long term. Technical director Remco Oversier does not talk about promotion or results when appointing Lijnders, but about 'the way of playing football and developing the team and individual during training sessions, in combination with the transfer of talents from our academy'.
 
 
This assignment encourages Lijnders to enthusiastically introduce its game principles, which are broadly similar to those of Liverpool. He does this with training forms that are unusual in the Netherlands. Lijnders works with the rule that his players must have the ball back within five seconds after losing the ball and within eight seconds, the time in which the chance of a hit is greatest, after ball win a goal attempt must take. If it fails to shoot or retake immediately, Lijnders will whistle the attack. In addition, he applies numerous other tricks to increase the chaos in the practice forms. In finishing forms, for example, different balls are used to simulate switching moments. Always a new ball, always a new situation, is the adder of Lijnders.
 
During the training camp in Marbella, Lijnders interprets his new group with information.

The group responds well to the new method in the first instance. 'That week in Marbella was my best training week ever', says Lijnders even now. "The players absorbed everything, that was unimaginable." Sun protection, direct pressure on ball loss, the role of the off-side players in the chase, the flexible positioning in the attack game: everything seems to be cut cake for the NEC selection. The team is armed to the teeth by Lijnders for the home game with Go Ahead. During the convincing victory they place the double number of sprints at high intensity compared to an average race during the first half of the season. Three days later, Lijnders also faces ten of these basic players against FC Oss. After a huge failure in the construction, Oss quickly takes the lead. After that, the tired NEC does not have the energy to turn it around. It loses with 3-0. "That was a mistake of mine," Lijnders acknowledges guiltily. 'I did everything to prepare the team for Go Ahead, but it was impossible for the players to do this again during the same week. That is also a matter of getting to know the group better. '
 
In his honeymoon, the novice trainer makes more of these kinds of mistakes. At Liverpool, for example, he is used to shifting tactical accents in a ten-to-zero practice form. At Melwood it works well when he gives Jordan Henderson, Georginio Wijnaldum, Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino some resistance without resistance. They effortlessly translate this into a party game and then implement it in the match. At NEC the training forms sometimes run smoothly, but in the stadium Lijnders rarely sees anything from his tips.
 
Another complication is that Mohamed Rayhi and Arnaut Groeneveld missed the training camp. As a result, the outside players are hardly prepared for the new way of playing, but Lijnders does raise them because of their individual class. That increases the uncertainty in the team. Just as it does not help that he reverses the system after a series of bad results. In order not to change too much too quickly, Lijnders chooses a formation with the point forward on the midfield. "While I prefer to play with a 6, because I always have protection behind the players who press," explains the NEC coach. During the home game with Jong PSV (2-0 win) on 8 February, he successfully switches to a midfield with the point backwards during the match.

It does not help that he overthrows the system after a series of bad results.
 
The unfortunate media appearances of Lijnders also contribute to the fall of NEC. He takes football very seriously, talks in jargon that is interspersed with English and Portuguese terms and has difficulty translating to the constituency, for whom football is a form of relaxation after a busy workweek. Ask Lijnders how he has trained and he starts with an enthusiastic argument. Ask Lijnders how it is possible that NEC performs so badly in away games and he starts to falter. He has analyzed these duels in detail and knows that the game has not been as bad as the result. Until the 4-0 beating in the playoffs against FC Emmen, the opponent in no pot under Lijnders has more goal attempts than NEC. And the quality of the chances suggests that the field game is often good outside, too,
 
Lijnder's unfortunate media appearances also contribute to the fall of NEC
 
Of the first seven matches under Lijnders, NEC loses four. The defeats have a distinctive pattern. Often the first goal attempt of the opponent immediately results in a hit. With a backlog on the scoreboard, NEC suddenly starts to limp on two thoughts. The attackers want to press ahead, but the last line no longer moves forward. This makes the field much too long. The inspectors Mart Dijkstra and Gregor Breinburg also find it difficult to close the spaces in the axis in the way that Lijnders asks. 'In the event of setbacks or fatigue, we struggled to carry out the new way of playing well', the trainer analyzes.

THE BALANCE AGREEMENT
During the difficult start, Lijnders runs the risk of losing the support of his team. The sentiment around the team turns around and angry supporters repeatedly wait for the player bus. Through conversations with the selection, Lijnders learns that he has asked too much. 'I thought I was going at their pace, but that did not seem to be the case. The criticism of course has an influence on them. The training sessions and meetings can still be so good, but if the results fail, the doubt grows. Coaching is seventy percent emotion, working with people and only thirty percent tactics. I have learned here that players are not machines. At Liverpool it sometimes seemed like that. During training I put footballers in the right place, that was purely tactical. The human side picked up Jürgen Klopp. That is why I have no regrets that I have stood on my own feet. I have learned a lot in a few months. I have not only become a better trainer, but also a better person. '
 
The turning point follows for Lijnders in the week before the top match against Fortuna Sittard (1-1). He makes a number of concessions to his playing style. In addition to the system, Lijnders returns to more familiar patterns on three other points. 'I have adjusted the roles of the front four. Ideally, I want the creative players to move on the inside, as with Liverpool, with a lot of freedom. At NEC my outside players feel more comfortable from the outside. They get that space. In addition, I adjusted the pressing. First I played purely from the zone and tried to get a two-on-one around the ball. Now we start in the zone, but from there we come face to face with man. That makes the players feel more comfortable and since then we are better at switching. We also do different preparations for the pressure. I prefer to force myself in from outside the ball and then conquer there, in order to create immediate danger. Now we try to keep the opponent on the outside. Everyone says that I have changed everything, but I have just scaled a lot and kept the same. '
 
At the same time, Lijnders tries to hold on to his vision of where the team should go. 'The destination has remained the same, we have only adjusted the route. In football you always play two matches. From the first one you can see the result on the scoreboard. The second is about the way you want to play, the game idea. You can sometimes lose that first game, the second one never. I am proud that I have kept my vision. '
 
This balancing act brings stability back to NEC. The team loses two of the last thirteen league matches. Against FC Eindhoven (3-2 defeat), the Nijmegen team collects two hits after its own corner. During the jump-off against Young Ajax, after a 2-0 loss in the first pot to be replayed due to the deployment of the suspended Teun Bijleveld, NEC fails to retake the lead in the Jupiler League. Lijnders looks back: 'Because we had played seven matches in 21 days and that had cost a lot of energy, we chose to put less fanatic pressure before usual than usual. Because of the 1-0 deficit we have done so in the second half. That provided opportunities, but we did not finish them. '

THE LISTENING
The hope of an escape in the last round of play held by NEC appears to be vain. The team of Lijnders collapses under the high voltage and plays equal against FC Dordrecht. Young Ajax becomes champion, Fortuna Sittard promotes immediately and NEC has to enter the playoffs. In it FC Emmen is the first opponent, the team against which Lijnders during the previous confrontation (1-0 loss) has seen the worst field game under his leadership. In the twelve days that NEC has to prepare for Emmen, the group dubs out. Goalkeeper Joris Delle is eliminated from the squad, excellence Arnaut Groeneveld gets injured and on the day of the first game left back Calvin Verdonk appears ill.
 
'There is such a pressure on that group, that is not normal. Five years of unrest around NEC comes out in these duels'
 
In Emmen, the disaster accumulates further. Lijnders has devised a plan for the diptych. He wants to limit the damage by setting up an extra defensive midfielder with Janio Bikel, who has not been in the starting line since September. Three days later, NEC must storm into De Goffert with Sven Braken and Steeven Langil in the forefront, attackers who return from a muscle injury and can not start twice. The idea of ​​Lijnders is to keep the center closed in Drenthe with a 4-3-2-1 formation and force Emmen over the side. The practice is that Emmen overflows through the flanks in the opening phase NEC. After only eight minutes, it is 2-0 by two corners. The team that has come to survive must suddenly make the game. That does not work at all. Partly due to the tactical conversion, NEC can not fall back on fixities. The defeat results in a 4-0 defeat. The 4-1 in-house is insufficient to repair that damage.
 
Lijnders sees how his promotion dream is shattered. 'Incomprehensible, but also explained. We had to get through the first ten minutes in Emmen. There is such a pressure on that group, that is not normal. Five years of unrest around NEC comes out in these duels. It is as if we are cycling with a flat tire. You can stick it, but if you drive over a bump, it will go wrong again. '

THE END-DESTINATION
The disastrous end of the season irrevocably raises the question whether there is a future for Lijnders at NEC, on which Thursday a negative answer was followed with the departure of the coach. Due to the starting moment the bar is very high and the results have been disappointing. Lijnders finds this conclusion too short-sighted. 'There are only four people who can judge this process. These are Remco Oversier, Wilco van Schaik, Adrie Bogers and me. We are the only ones who know which way we have gone, we know why we did that and we know which processes have played in the background. '
 
In the stands nobody understands that NEC claims to see growth during the four months in which promotion to the Eredivisie has been lost
 
At NEC there seems to be a growing gap between the inner world and the outside world. That can be seen when Lijnders after the 3-3 draw against FC Dordrecht says that his team has not lost the title in the last few months. He refers with that statement to the way NEC initially formed after the stiff start under his leadership. Lijnders thinks about the bond with his staff and players who have been deepened by the crisis, the level that is sometimes achieved during the training sessions and the painful lessons he has learned himself by losing.

The outside world sees a team that has given the title out of their hands after a curious change of trainer, but in interviews does not seem to indicate the urgency of this problem. The incorrigible optimism arouses misunderstanding among the grassroots. In the stands in De Goffert nobody understands that NEC claims to see growth during the four months in which promotion to the Eredivisie has been lost.
 
Perhaps the most mistakes were made in communication during the Lijnders project. Perhaps there would have been more understanding for the missed promotion if NEC had explained that the club has for the long term committed to a vision that should lead to a modern playing style. Where zone coverage is used instead of basket coverage, football is played in a higher intensity, more flexibility is in the positioning, is broken with the training style of simple position games and players are less one-sided. On those points, Lijnders claims progress: 'We can now play from the zone, in clubs of matches are more compelling without the ball and the defenders are always more comfortable with large spaces in their backs.'

NEC could have predicted that this change process would take more time than a few months and that it therefore took a huge risk in the fight for promotion. However, Lijnders was encouraged to introduce many of his ideas immediately. When the problems of adjustment and unrest around the team resulted in defeats, Van Schaik and Oversier were hiding. No one explained the choices made, so that after losing duels, Lijnders was always given the ungrateful task of explaining what had gone wrong. Where he could not possibly indicate the change of course in the winter break, because every statement from him about the first half of the season would contain implicit criticism of his assistant Bogers. Lijnders drowned in part because the rest of the organization did not want to get a wet suit in an attempt to save him.
 
When the adjustment problems and unrest around the team resulted in defeats, the directors Van Schaik and Oversier were hidden
 
Four days after the elimination in the playoffs against FC Emmen, NEC communicates that it has been decided in mutual consultation to terminate the cooperation with Pepijn Lijnders. At the NEC site, Lijnders reacts: 'Firstly, I want to thank my immediate daily staff, they have given everything and were extremely motivated to bring NEC success. Top and foremost professionals who give character to the club from the inside out. Secondly, I want to wish the club success, I wanted to build with a lot of drive, to form a new real NEC team but I feel that it is better to step away and open the door for a new trainer / coach who is fully confident . "

[BabuYagu]

It's strange he always struck me as having a great brain for the game, but not necessarily great at the people side his interviews were always a little too analytical.  Obviously just assuming here who knows, hope he finds another opportunity though.

Most coaches fail in their first management job. It's the most likely outcome. You have all these ideas and theories that you have never actually used in real situations. Rodgers bombed badly in his first few gigs before Swansea. Rafa got 1 win in 9 at Osasuna in his first job away from youth coaching.

[Chakan]

Most coaches fail in their first management job. It's the most likely outcome. You have all these ideas and theories that you have never actually used in real situations. Rodgers bombed badly in his first few gigs before Swansea. Rafa got 1 win in 9 at Osasuna in his first job away from youth coaching.

Gary Nev... nay fuck it.

[Suareznumber7]

Not majorly surprised by this. I had a concern this might happen for him, and thought it might be taking a big job too soon (and at the wrong moment in the season)

Doubt he'd want it, but is Stevie's job still vacant?

You really think he’d want to go from 1st team coach at LFC, to manager at NEC, back to replacing Gerrard as U18 manager? 

[Nessy76]

You really think he’d want to go from 1st team coach at LFC, to manager at NEC, back to replacing Gerrard as U18 manager?

Cant' see that. Can't really say more without getting into speculation about Buvac's situation. Wait and see, I suppose. I'm sure he's got a great future in the game, just reading his interviews it's clear he's operating on a different level to most. Whether that will eventually translate into being a great manager is another question. You need a whole different set of skills for that, and a lot of luck.

From the piece above, it looks like he tried to implement his vision on a squad that maybe just wasn't up for it, or wasn't ready for it. Klopp puts a lot of emphasis on the work of the fitness team, but it's doubtful NEC are as well equipped there.

[classycarra]

You really think he’d want to go from 1st team coach at LFC, to manager at NEC, back to replacing Gerrard as U18 manager? 

Can you read? Do you know what "doubt he'd want it" means?

[paulrazor]

Can you read? Do you know what "doubt he'd want it" means?

lol

[BabuYagu]

lol

*TV Burp Jingle*
"Most needlessly confrontational internet post of the week"

[Vinay]

Most coaches fail in their first management job. It's the most likely outcome. You have all these ideas and theories that you have never actually used in real situations. Rodgers bombed badly in his first few gigs before Swansea. Rafa got 1 win in 9 at Osasuna in his first job away from youth coaching.

Which makes Pep Guardiola a double genius then!

[conman]

Which makes Pep Guardiola a double genius then!

I guess it's important to have a mentor behind the scenes.

[BabuYagu]

Which makes Pep Guardiola a double genius then!

I think it's easier in situations where you know the playing squad such as that. Or the old boot room here. Plus you are stepping into a club where everything is in place to succeed you just need to fine tune a little to turn a few small negative situations into positives and leave a mark.

My statement is probably more accurate where that isn't the case. They are going to struggling clubs that probably need an overhaul on some level and you are unfamiliar with the players on a day-to-day level. Plus perhaps there is a sense of needing to earn respect, win players over, as a first time manager that wouldn't come with moving up the ranks at a club.

[Nessy76]

Which makes Pep Guardiola a double genius then!

Yes, imagine how hard it must have been to implement the ideas you have learned at Barcelona, at Barcelona.

[Dim Glas]

How the hell does Guardiola even come into this coversation

The man's had a golden spoon in his gob his whole coaching career. 

'Our' Pep is on a different path, as 99.9% of coaches starting out in Europe are.

[Bolrick]

I would like him to be back as a 1st team coach.

[Suareznumber7]

Can you read? Do you know what "doubt he'd want it" means?

 

[So… Howard Philips]

Which makes Pep Guardiola a double genius then!

Unless you are a City or Barcelona fan why mention Pep when we have had a succession of our own managers from within the Bootroom?

[Redcap]

Re: Pep - his first management gig was Barca B, so it wasn't exactly like the whole thing was new to him. Mind you, he also did extremely well in that job.

[jillcwhomever]

Dominic King is one of the first Liverpool journalists that has confirmed the club would like to offer Pep his place back at the club. Be interesting to see what happens here. It could be that the time in coaching has wetted his appetite for more, but hopefully he can be persuaded to return to Liverpool.

[Djozer]

Yes, imagine how hard it must have been to implement the ideas you have learned at Barcelona, at Barcelona.

I'd take Lijnders back, if he wants to come. Seemed very highly rated, by many accounts. I still holding out hope that Buvac returns though. Am I right in thinking there's been no definitive word on his status either way yet?

[Filler.]

'a little too analytical'

Perfect. Welcome home Pep. He can kip on the sofa for a week surely.

[Dim Glas]

I'd take Lijnders back, if he wants to come. Seemed very highly rated, by many accounts. I still holding out hope that Buvac returns though. Am I right in thinking there's been no definitive word on his status either way yet?

They are certainly not making anything public about it till after the season for sure! 

Be great if Pep comes back, not sure if he'd want to, if he has plans to get straight back into head coaching, but a nice option for him to have!

[PhaseOfPlay]

You really think he’d want to go from 1st team coach at LFC, to manager at NEC, back to replacing Gerrard as U18 manager?

If he has bills to pay, then he probably doesn't care. When your wages come from such an unstable environment as professional coaching, you take whatever jobs will pay you the money - unless you're already filthy rich, in which case, you can take the Rangers or Valencia jobs

But for the mere mortals, whatever pays the bills gets the call.

[BabuYagu]

You really think he’d want to go from 1st team coach at LFC, to manager at NEC, back to replacing Gerrard as U18 manager?

Beale went from us to assistant manager of the most successful team in South America - Sao Paulo - then back to be coaching one of the youngest groups for us (U7 I think) and is now up in Scotland with Gerrard, likely heading up youth operations up there.

[Nessy76]

Beale went from us to assistant manager of the most successful team in South America - Sao Paulo - then back to be coaching one of the youngest groups for us (U7 I think) and is now up in Scotland with Gerrard, likely heading up youth operations up there.

I don't think we have directly replaced Lijnders' role between the academy and the first team. If we wanted him managing the u18s, we would have given him that to begin with.

With Gerrard and a few others going to Rangers, we'll need to restructure everything below first team level anyway, whatever happens with Buvac. I'm sure we could find a role for Pep, or create a new one again.

[Samie]

PoP loses out to another one. The man just want's a hug from Kloppo for fuck sakes...and to wear his short short's.

[Suareznumber7]

Beale went from us to assistant manager of the most successful team in South America - Sao Paulo - then back to be coaching one of the youngest groups for us (U7 I think) and is now up in Scotland with Gerrard, likely heading up youth operations up there.

Right, but when Beale came back when there were few options for him at the club as all of our coaching positions were full.  Gerrard took over as U18 manager and Critchley moved up to U23 manager.  I’m not sure heading up youth operations at Rangers would be seen as a lesser role then what he did in Sau Paulo or at Liverpool but more a completely different role with different responsibilities.  Taking over youth operations at Rangers would be more in line with what Inglethorpe does for us. 

If Pep does indeed come back to Liverpool then you would think, at the very least, he would be offered his old role back which hasn’t been filled yet.  And, if Klopp rates him as highly as he seems to, and there is an opening as assistant manager at the club, it seems like a good fit for Pep to take. 

[BabuYagu]

Right, but when Beale came back when there were few options for him at the club as all of our coaching positions were full.  Gerrard took over as U18 manager and Critchley moved up to U23 manager.  I’m not sure heading up youth operations at Rangers would be seen as a lesser role then what he did in Sau Paulo or at Liverpool but more a completely different role with different responsibilities.  Taking over youth operations at Rangers would be more in line with what Inglethorpe does for us. 

If Pep does indeed come back to Liverpool then you would think, at the very least, he would be offered his old role back which hasn’t been filled yet.  And, if Klopp rates him as highly as he seems to, and there is an opening as assistant manager at the club, it seems like a good fit for Pep to take.

My point was more - don't make any definitive conclusions based on the limited information we have available to us. We don't know what is going on in Beale's head. For example, for a man with Beale's skillset, we wouldn't have been the only club that could employ him having to almost make a job to do so. You could equally argue having moved away from youth coaching and got a taste for the next step up, he got little job satisfaction and would prefer to stick at what he enjoys and feels he is good at. And doing that somewhere he feels comfortable after a hectic few months in Brazil.

Maybe similar has happened with Ljinders. Maybe he re-evaluates his coaching career to date, asses what aspect he enjoys the most and realises he would like to coach a team but at youth level again, like he did with Neves group at Porto and the U18 group here.

Or maybe he wants to come back to the role he had. Or even move into the assistant role as you said. They are all options, some more likely than others. But I wouldn't rule anything out. There is the human aspect in all of this - in people making decisions that they feel will best satisfy them even if from the outside looking in, they make little sense, logically speaking.