Pep Lijnders was more than Jurgen Klopp's right-hand man

After just one more game, a home Premier League match against Wolves with essentially nothing on the line, Liverpool will be losing a beloved and impactful leader.

His guidance has been key in the team's current era, as he's been around for every trophy since the 2019 Champions League, and it'll be borderline impossible to fill the void he leaves behind. Klopp even recently stated that he put Lijnders in charge of preparations for that 2019 Final three weeks beforehand.

Of course, I'm speaking of Pepijn Lijnders, Liverpool's assistant coach for almost all of the past decade- was there someone else you were expecting?

Klopp even recently stated that he put Lijnders in charge of preparations for that 2019 Final three weeks beforehand in an effort to overcome his dismal record in Finals at the time.

Jokes aside, as much as we'll miss the animated personality and warm leadership of Jürgen Klopp, Lijnders will be a massive loss in his own right when it comes to the technical innovation he's helped to foster at Anfield over the past several seasons.

Other than a quick stint at Dutch side NEC in 2018, Lijnders has been with Liverpool for the entire Klopp era, as he initially arrived even before the gaffer, back in 2014.

That short-term opportunity with NEC is the only time Lijnders has managed a club of his own at the senior level, so he's moving on to pursue an opportunity in that area.

He should be fully ready for the task- even before Liverpool, he worked with an array of strong managers at Porto, which really kickstarted his journey and began to shape his coaching philosophy.

Pep initially worked with Liverpool's youth teams, but moved into a brand-new position of first-team development coach.

In that role, he notably fostered the development of Trent Alexander-Arnold, who obviously rose through the ranks quickly and became a huge part of the current Liverpool era- and presumably the next as well.

After returning to Liverpool in the wake of his stint with NEC, Lijnders' biggest impact has been in the training process.

Klopp has credited him with doing a brilliant job in this area, allowing the manager to focus more on the big picture, with the day-to-day processes under competent control.

This role will be particularly challenging to replace via an equally-qualified assistant, although it's worth noting that Arne Slot is not expected to have as many club-running responsibilities as Klopp did, with Michael Edwards back in the fold.

Still, Pep will be sorely missed. His fingerprints are all over the tactical styles and standards of this thrilling era of Liverpool football, perhaps just as much as Klopp's.

His presumably impending full-time managerial opportunity will be well-earned, and it's probably a good time for the club to move onto new tactics as well.

However, there will certainly be some growing pains with him gone, and most importantly, his contributions to so many wonderful moments and achievements will never be forgotten.