Former Liverpool star Phil Thompson is of the assumption that the club had Jurgen Klopp lined up from a few weeks ago.

The German was confirmed as the Merseyside club's new manager on Thursday, four days after the sacking of Brendan Rodgers.

It seemed that the former Borussia Dortmund boss was the only name linked with the Anfield job and according to Thompson, the Reds' ownership group would have had the 48-year-old waiting in the wings until after the weekend's derby with Everton.

"I would imagine this has been done two weeks prior to the derby game. I don't think it's a shock that since the derby game there have not been any other names thrown into the hat," Thompson said on Sky Sports.

"With respect to Brendan Rodgers, they've left it until a week after the derby to announce it and I think it's the right thing. It's what football clubs do.

"If they are unsure of the manager, they make sure they've got somebody in place. And this guy is top notch. A lot of other teams would be loving this guy.

"In Brendan Rodgers, we had a young upcoming manager. This one is the finished article with pedigree."