Fowler would love to work with new Liverpool manager
Klopp or not, Fowler confident next Liverpool manager will revive glory days
He was seated on one end of the table at Singapore's Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel, trading light-hearted barbs with Lee Sharpe and even Paul Parker, who was down the opposite end of the hall.
He was at the press conference for The Castlewood Group Battle of the Reds - a glamour clash the organisers believe will bring to Singapore the magical rivalry between Liverpool and Manchester United - and even if the Nov 17 fixture at the National Stadium will be an 80-minute exhibition, Robbie Fowler delivered jabs of truth.
The former Liverpool hotshot broke into the cheekiest of his smiles when asked about rumours linking him to Juergen Klopp's backroom, should the German be tempted to Anfield.
BELIEF IN NEW BOSS
"Everyone knows my relationship with Liverpool, I love being part of the club. I'm employed at the club now as an ambassador and, given a chance to work with the new manager, of course I'd be absolutely delighted to," said Fowler.
"But it's not my choice, it's up to manager, the owners, but I'd love to.
"Liverpool have a history of the 'boot room', and maybe we've sort of lost our identity a little bit. It could help everyone."
"I'm not after a job now, by any means, but I would love to see someone who's got real good links with the club to go help the manager in his new role," added the one-time mercurial striker.
Merseyside daily the Liverpool Echo reported yesterday that the club expect to name Klopp as their new manager by the end of the week, along with two of his staff from his Borussia Dortmund days, Zeljko Buvac and Peter Krawietz.
And while Fowler never mentioned Klopp by name - he instead insisted that he could not pick between the German and Carlo Ancelotti - he exuded immense confidence in the appointment of the "new gaffer".
"The results have not been great, and if you're being honest, not many people were shocked when Brendan (Rodgers) went," he said.
"Hopefully the new manager can come in and galvanise everyone straight away and go on a bit of a run. I've no doubt that this new manager will be a success."
The former England international spoke against the spirit of doom hanging over Liverpool as change sweeps over the club.
"People are getting carried away. Liverpool are five or six points behind the leaders of the Premier League but, yes, the results and performance have not been up there with the best we've seen of Liverpool, but we're not a million miles away," he insisted.
Liverpool are 10th in the 20-team Premier League, six points behind leaders Manchester City, and just four adrift of Arsenal and United.
"I've said before that football has become a massive business and, if you're not getting results that fans and owners want, there's every right to go out and get a new manager.
"There's a lot of money being spent, a lot of money getting spent on managers, and it's entirely the owners' decision," he said.
"Hopefully this manager will be the man who leads us to the league title that's eluded us for a while."
Ticket sales for the Battle of the Reds have surpassed expectations, with only 3,700 of 25,000 tickets remain up for grabs.
With Singapore mostly split between fans of the two biggest clubs in England, perhaps it is no surprise.
"We are excited to be able to bring one of football's oldest rivalries to our shores in what will without a doubt be one of the sporting highlights of the 50th anniversary of our island home," said Castlewood Group chief executive, Chris Comer, who was a child the last time he witnessed a Liverpool-United fixture "live".
Fowler hinted at the competitive nature of the rivalry when he added: "We may enjoy a laugh and have a bit of banter during warm-ups and all, but when we cross that white line, we're desperate to win."
LIVERPOOL: Jerzy Dudek, Luis Garcia, Steve Harkness, Phil Babb, Stephane Henchoz, Robbie Fowler, Steve McManaman, Vladimir, Smicer, Dietmar Hamann, Patrik Berger, Bjorn Tore Kvarme, Ian Rush, Jan Kromkamp, David Thompson, Michael Thomas Jari Littmanen
Versus
MAN UNITED: Nick Culkin, Lee Martin, Russell Beardsmore, Paul Parker, Ronny Johnsen, Bojan Djordjic, Lee Sharpe, Keith Gillespie, Jesper Blomqvist, Ben Thornley, Clayton Blackmore, Quinton Fortune, Karel Poborsky, Louis Saha, Andy Cole
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