Klopp’s ‘connector’ – who is new Swansea boss Matos?

Luka Modric has backed him, in part because Jose Mourinho is known as Jurgen Klopp’s “connector” at Liverpool.

At Swansea City, Vitor Matos is now faced with the difficult task of establishing himself as a true man.

Matos was appointed as Alan Sheehan’s replacement on Monday, making him the club’s fifth manager in five years.

The 37-year-old’s first top-notch position in British football comes after only five months as manager for Maritimo, a second-tier club in Portugal.

Matos, a 31-year-old elite development coach, had already spent years developing himself by the time he arrived at Anfield in October 2019.

When Mourinho led his hometown team Porto to the Champions League title as a teenager, Matos was given the opportunity to become a coach. After beginning his coaching career at Porto as a youth player, he also spent time with Shandong Luneng, a Chinese Super League side, before resuming as the B team coach.

The first encounter between Matos and Pep Lijnders, who would later become Klopp’s assistant, took place in Porto.

Matos was recommended to fill Lijnders’ previous position, which involved nurturing the best academy talent for the first team, spending time with both the Under-23 and senior teams, and making sure all sides were on the same page with the football they produced.

The development of artists like Curtis Jones, Neco Williams, Harvey Elliott, Sepp van den Berg, and Jarrell Quansah has been at least partially credited to Matos.

Klopp characterized him as the link between the Academy’s potential and the Premier League’s needs.

Football Director of Football, Dave Adams, for the Football Association of Wales (FAW) says, “He’s taken the right steps working with Klopp.”

Along with former Real Madrid number two Davide Ancelotti, former Nottingham Forest assistant Mile Jedinak, and former Wales and Swansea defender Neil Taylor, Matos completed his Uefa Pro Licence in Wales.

He’ll undoubtedly play in the Swansea style, which has, in my opinion, occasionally been questioned in the past.

“I think you’ll see a real strong identity, trying to be really brave with the ball and courageous, and I think it’ll be a team that is very aggressive with the ball — high pressing and counter-pressing,” said one player.

Even though the legendary German coach is busy running the Red Bull organization, it seems Klopp will not be far away from Matos’ side when needed for advice at Swansea.

We are still friends, Matos said, “We speak frequently enough, he has a job, and he hasn’t a lot of time,” despite our differences.

“He’s a person I care a lot about and cares about me, and that’s a relationship I always want to care about.”

Matos spent time with Lijnders at Red Bull Salzburg before taking over at Maritimo after Klopp and Luis left Liverpool at the same time in 2024.

Although that was his only senior role five months ago, Swansea has not for the first time given newcomers a chance.

Particularly notable is Roberto Martinez’s announcement as Swans manager, who is now in charge of Portugal’s Nations League-winning national team, when he was a 33-year-old player.

In addition, Graham Potter and Steve Cooper had not previously managed in senior club football in England prior to their appointments, despite newcomers like Garry Monk, who led Swansea to their record-setting Premier League points total and eighth place.

Matos is unique. He has only 12 games with Maritimo as a frontline boss despite having a proven track record as a coach.

“I get it, but that might concern some people,” Matos said.

“But at the same time, I feel completely prepared. Without being prepared, I wouldn’t be here. I hope everyone feels much more confident in everything in the coming weeks or months.

That’s for sure because I’m here to try and turn things around.

Tom Gorringe, the Championship club’s CEO, claimed that the championship club used statistical analysis to determine whether Matos was eligible for a position at Swansea after his detailed presentation on what is required.

Matos also received the approval of some of the former players, as well as the greats of Croatia and Real Madrid, minority owner Modric.

He was not directly involved in the conversation, so he’s scheduled to speak with Vitor soon, but he hasn’t yet, he said, adding that the two were scheduled to speak more in-depth in the upcoming days.

As we progress through it, “Luka has been aware of a lot of the process.” He was a strong supporter of where we ended up and had the opportunity to review the technical presentation.

The risk level decreases as the more research you do and the more conversations you have.

“Throughout the entire process, Vitor has excelled in every way, and ultimately you get more information, do more due diligence, and have a better sense of how things are going to work,” said Vitor.

The Matos-Swansea connection appears to be logical on its face.

Matos claims to have long-held admiration for the Swans, particularly given their previous managers’ efforts, including those of Brendan Rodgers, Michael Laudrup, and Brendan Rodgers.

Success and silverware were brought about by this fashionable, possession-based philosophy.

Matos wants to use the high-intensity techniques he learned from Klopp to replicate that.

The club’s identity and DNA were clearly identifiable when I remember Swansea, Matos said.

We started losing that, and we need to rebuild that together. Fans can therefore anticipate that. They can anticipate that we are moving in that direction, and they can anticipate a clear identity.

We need to find consistency in our way of playing, which will take time of course, there will be ups and downs, and we will all ultimately be proud of what we can do on the field.