A former Liverpool star captured attention through comments made on social media shortly before joining Fenerbahce

Liverpool icon Martin Skrtel was forced to apologise after appearing to lash out at Jurgen Klopp shortly before leaving Anfield in 2016. The centre-back spent eight-and-a-half years with the Reds and was sold to Fenerbahce, who host Andoni Iraola’s side in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Skrtel was signed by Rafa Benitez and he subsequently starred under Brendan Rodgers as the club came close to ending their league title drought. The Slovakia international initially retained his place upon Klopp’s arrival in October 2015 but an injury in December provided others with opportunities to impress.

The defender made just five more appearances after returning to fitness in March and was linked with a move to Turkey that summer. However, Skrtel’s seemingly inevitable departure attracted controversy after he responded to derogatory comments about Klopp on social media.

An Instagram post by the defender’s friend had included a hashtag which translated to “Klopp is a d*******.” The Liverpool star’s account replied to the post: “'Last hashtag is top.” The Instagram user responded: “Hope Jurgen won't see it”, while Skrtel's account said: “Hope he does.”

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In June 2016, a month before joining Turkish giants Fenerbahce, Skrtel distanced himself from the comments made about the Liverpool boss. The 41-year-old offered an apology but insisted he had not posted the replies from his account.

“I am truly sorry for the situation and what was written under my name,” Skrtel wrote on Instagram. “These days, when I am very busy, I have asked my close friend to help me manage my social media profiles.

“He got taken away and he did not realise how serious the comments may appear. I would like to stress that the opinion he expressed is not my opinion.”

Despite his apology, Skrtel was not given time to fight his way back into the Liverpool team as he was sold for £5.5million that July, while Joel Matip signed for the Reds that summer. However, Skrtel insisted that he would continue to support the club and shared his admiration for Klopp shortly after leaving Anfield.

“Eight-and-a-half years, that’s a lot,” Skrtel said in September 2016. “I wanted to change and also want a new challenge.

“I am thankful to all the managers I worked with at Liverpool. Jurgen Klopp is a wonderful person but I feel if I stayed I couldn’t have played like before.

“I’m a Liverpool fan from now on. It’d be great if we won two finals last year but these things happen. I hope they’ll win something in the future.”

Skrtel spent three years with Fenerbahce and later won the Turkish Super Lig with Istanbul Basaksehir before retiring at Slovakian side Spartak Trnava in 2022. Meanwhile, Klopp ushered in a successful era at Anfield, winning the Champions League and Premier League within four years of Skrtel’s exit.

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