FeatureThe timeline and inside story of Jürgen Klopp's arrival at Liverpool

October 8, 2015 was the date as the German arrived on Merseyside to sign his first Reds contract and become the newest custodian of the men's team.

With exclusive insight and memories from the days leading up to the announcement and after it, Liverpoolfc.com has put together a comprehensive timeline of Klopp's arrival to mark the anniversary…

Monday to Thursday: An 'off the scale' story takes shape

The rarity of a managerial change at Anfield means each is seismic in nature, and days of speculation regarding who would succeed Brendan Rodgers in the Liverpool dugout soon formed into a sharp focus on one candidate in particular.

Klopp, a gregarious German who in his previous role had revolutionised Borussia Dortmund en route to two league titles and a Champions League final while playing a thrilling brand of gegenpressing, 'heavy metal' football, had, it was being reported, been identified as the frontrunner for the job.

Journalist Carl Markham, who was covering the story for the Press Association, recalls the frenzy of interest around the topic as 'off the scale'.

"The immediate reaction from journalists was to identify a potential successor and you didn't have to look very far with Klopp on a sabbatical after leaving Dortmund in the summer," says Markham.

"Despite an up-and-down final season in the Bundesliga there was no doubt he was still viewed as one of the leading coaches of his generation and it did not take long for word to start emerging he was the man they wanted. Then it is a case of trying to track down any inside information on what his position was and whether he would be prepared to cut short his self-imposed break.

"It was the story of the week and everyone was on the case, not just journalists who cover the club on a regular basis but all football reporters. Media in Germany had a bit of a headstart due to their already-established contacts and so the story started to be driven from there.

"Every report, every mention, in online editions of their papers were pored over for any snippet of information which emerged in Klopp's native tongue which could then be subsequently verified by ourselves."

He adds: "By the middle of the week it became apparent Klopp was going to become the next manager... [and on] Thursday that week things really heated up."

2.44pm, Thursday: A flight followed all around the world

At 3.44pm CEST, flight LNX30HY departed Dortmund, bound for John Lennon Airport. Pretty quickly the world would learn of this development.

It was the plane carrying Klopp to dot the Is and cross the Ts and begin his Anfield reign.

Such was the excitement about his arrival, more than 35,000 people were tracking the plane on the air-traffic site flightradar24.

It was one of their most-tracked flights in all of 2015 and very much the first high-profile example of football supporters scanning the skies for intel.

"The rise of football-transfer flight tracking really took off with Klopp's arrival in Liverpool and interest has only continued to grow," Ian Petchenik from flightradar24 says.

"We've found over the years that UK football fans are some of the most passionate supporters of their teams anywhere in the world and we've come to expect that when major transfer news hits the wires fans will turn to flightradar24 to follow along in real time."

As those who tracked it knew, wheels touched down just after 5pm local time. One journey ending on Merseyside was the start of another. The Reds' new boss was here.

3.58pm, Thursday: Unofficial confirmation?

While Klopp's plane was in the air, those on the mailing list of Liverpool's press office received an intriguing message.

At 3.58pm BST, an email was sent out with the subject: 'LIVERPOOL FOOTBALL CLUB; PRESS CONFERENCE NOTIFICATION'.

It began: "NB – the below notification is not to be duplicated, published or broadcast. It is for notification purposes only.

"Liverpool Football Club will be hosting a press conference at 10.00am on Friday 9th October 2015 to make a major club announcement."

What could that possibly be?

8.58pm, Thursday: It's official

Now it was very much a matter of when and not if an announcement would arrive to confirm Klopp's appointment.

"By then we, as journalists, knew a deal had been agreed even if the formal announcement hadn't been made," explains Markham.

"Once the cat was out of the bag I remember fans put their well-known resourcefulness to full effect trying to hunt down Klopp's Mercedes Vito from the airport. It was the sort of thing absolutely made for Twitter with 'reports' of sightings all over town."

After that much-followed flight from Germany touched down on Merseyside, Klopp had been whisked off to the Hope Street Hotel in the city centre to put the final seal on negotiations and officially become Liverpool's new manager.

He is pictured signing his contract alongside then-CEO Ian Ayre, and it was in that room, too, that Klopp provided his first recorded words as Reds boss, sitting down with official club media for an extended interview that would be released in full the following morning, and from which one particular phrase has taken a memorable – and prescient – place in history.

"We have to change… from doubters to believers," he urged as he set out his vision for LFC's future under his leadership.

While the opening dispatch from the new gaffer would not be aired in its entirety until the next day, plans for an online announcement that night could now be actioned; pre-prepared background material on Klopp's playing and managerial history, statistics, quotes, photos and more were finalised to introduce him ahead of the formal unveiling on Friday.

So it was that at 8.58pm, the button was pushed on a new Reds era, with a Tweet to the world declaring: "It's official – Jürgen Klopp is the new manager of Liverpool Football Club."

10am, Friday: The world's media awaits

Reporters and camera crews from every corner of the globe were lining up outside Anfield well before the admission time of 8.30am.

Because of the huge interest, the usual press room in the old Main Stand would not suffice for Klopp's introductory press conference.

Instead, the larger 'Reds Lounge' inside the Centenary Stand – since renamed the Sir Kenny Dalglish Stand – would have to be used. But it still wasn't big enough for the occasion and the supplies of hot drinks, orange juice and pastries went quickly.

"I don't think I've ever seen one like it," Markham remembers. "There was standing room only by the time it got under way."

Klopp's 26-minute session in front of the cameras and microphones was philosophical, enlightening and downright amusing in parts. There were a number of soundbites that wholly catered to the needs of everyone in attendance and the fans watching on.

Markham analyses: "Much was made of his 'Normal One' quote but I think by far the most telling thing he said was, 'If we sit here in four years I think we will have won one title, I'm pretty sure.'

"There was some conjecture at the time whether he meant the title or any trophy as I think people in the room gave him the benefit of the doubt in terms of his English, although we were soon to learn there would be no issues on that front."

In the eight years' worth of press conferences that have followed, reporters have continued to find Klopp just as refreshing when he takes to the top table at Anfield or the AXA Training Centre.

"I genuinely think we are quite lucky as journalists to have someone like Klopp who is so good at reading a room and is not afraid to speak his mind on all manner of subjects," Markham finishes.

"I think we just take for granted he is doing it all in his second language.

"There doesn't appear to be any question he won't answer – even if his immediate reaction sometimes gives you the impression he won't (and believe me, I've had a few of those!).

"But it is the humour, honesty and warmth he puts into his responses which provide the best answers. But he is also prepared to delve deeper into the more technical side of things without being over-complex or condescending.

"On a wider front, one piece of Klopp oration which has stuck in my mind from the moment I heard it is the 'We are Liverpool: This Means More' video message which was played out on the big screens in Kyiv ahead of the 2018 Champions League final.

"Yes, it was a scripted piece recorded a month previously talking about the history and mentality of the club, of community, solidarity and family, but it was one minute, 51 seconds of pure theatre delivered in such a calm, measured way that every word struck a chord with fans.

"It seemed to carry additional weight that night and I remember I Tweeted at the time, 'I reckon even I could do a job for him after hearing that, God knows what it does for the players.'

"Unfortunately it was not to be that night but it still gives me goosebumps listening back to it five years on."