• Jürgen Klopp transformed Mainz 05 from a second-tier club to Bundesliga contenders.

• Despite limited resources, Klopp led Mainz to their first-ever Bundesliga promotion in 2004.

• Mainz qualified for European competition under Klopp, defying expectations with a small budget and stadium.

• Klopp’s loyalty saw him stay even through relegation, solidifying his legacy at the club.

Jurgen Klopp is undoubtedly one of the best managers in the world, as he has led both Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool into historical achievement. It can also be said that he did it with limited resources compared to his main opponents at the time, whether it was Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga or Manchester City in the Premier League. These made his successes even more special with those clubs. This article will be looking back at one of the earliest phases of Jurgen Klopp as a manager, when he managed the German club Mainz 05. It is the only club where the German never managed to win silverware, and yet he ended up doing something extremely incredible with them. Let us go back to Klopp’s time at Mainz.

A special past connection

Jurgen Klopp spent his younger years playing for 2 football clubs, SV Glatten and later TuS Ergenzingen. The German also used to do a number of part-time jobs during his amateur football career, including working at a local video rental store and loading heavy items onto lorries.

His professional football career began in the year of 1987, and went on to play for several clubs like 1. FC Pforzheim, Eintracht Frankfurt II Viktoria Sindlingen, and Rot-Weiss Frankfurt. However, the most important and special phase of his playing career began when he joined Mainz 05 in 1990.

Klopp went on to have a 11 year stint with the German club, where he established himself as a fan-favorite with his attitude and commitment. Coming to his player profile, the former Dortmund coach was a striker who eventually started playing in defense by 1995. At the time of his retirement, Klopp finished his Mainz stint as the club’s all-time top scorer with 56 goals.

Many felt that was the end of Klopp’s time at Mainz, as they bid farewell to one of the club’s greatest. However, destiny had other plans.

Back to Mainz

The very same year he retired at the club, Jurgen Klopp was back at Mainz. This time as a manager, as he was appointed by the club on 27th February 2001 following the dismissal of Eckhard Krautzun. He began his new role as manager with a 1-0 win over MSV Duisburg. What followed was a magnificent winning streak, as Klopp led Mainz to victory in six of his first 7 games in charge. All of this saw the club finish in 14th place, as Mainz escaped relegation.

The 2001–02 was his first full season with the club, as Mainz looked to achieve promotion and  secure a place in the Bundesliga. Klopp guided Mainz to a 4th placed finish in the league, which meant they narrowly missed out on promotion. He was still able to implement his favoured pressing and counter-pressing tactics at the club, which meant the future was bright for them.

Mainz once again finished 4th in 2002–03, which saw them denied promotion again on the final day on goal difference. The club was still stuck in 2. Bundesliga, as heartbreak followed them once again

There is a saying that third time's the charm, and this is what went on to happen here as well. Jurgen Klopp and his Mainz side finished the following 2003–04 season in third place, which meant the club secured promotion to the Bundesliga for the first time in the club's history.

Further greatness

The success story continued in the Bundesliga, as Mainz finished 11th in their first top-flight season in 2004–05. This was a magnificent feat though, considering the fact that Mainz had the smallest budget and the smallest stadium in the league. Klopp's side finished 11th again in 2005–06 as well, but they also secured qualification for the 2005–06 UEFA Cup. Even though they went on to lose against Sevilla in the first round, the mere fact such a team was able to qualify for the tournament was nothing short of extraordinary.

The Klopp and Mainz side however, faced disappointment towards the end of the 2006–07 season as they became relegated. Klopp however, decided to remain loyal to the club. Failure to gain promotion in the following season saw the German resign at the end of the 2007–08 season.

Jurgen Klopp left the club with a record of 109 wins, 78 draws, and 83 losses. That was the end of his second phase at Mainz and perhaps the final one as well. He will forever be seen as one of the most influential figures in the club's history.

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