There was a special guest at the AXA Training Center in Liverpool on Wednesday, with Rugby World Cup winner and South Africa captain Siya Kolisi in attendance.
A huge Liverpool fan, Kolisi led the Springboks to World Cup glory in the final against England in November 2019.
Later that month, a chance encounter with Jurgen Klopp in Cape Town led to an invite for Liverpool’s Champions League clash with Napoli, the first time he had the opportunity to see the Reds live at Anfield.
And Kolisi fulfilled another dream earlier this week when, courtesy of AdidasZA, he met Klopp again and watched the Liverpool players take part in Wednesday’s training session.
The South African rugby star posted some footage of Virgil van Dijk in action on Instagram, as well as photos with Klopp and Thiago, whom he calls a “magician”.
Kolisi was there with his wife Rachel, who described the day as a “dream come true” on her Instagram.
In 2019, when he had just won the World Cup, he explained his disbelief after running into Klopp.
“I was sitting there with Faf du Plessis, the South African cricket captain, and I almost fell off my chair when I saw him come in because I couldn’t believe it,” he told Liverpoolfc.com at the time.
“He went to the bathroom and I was outside waiting for him to come out.
I was too scared to ask [for a chat], so I just gave him my phone because I knew someone who knew him. Then he came over and said, ‘Dude, you could have asked. I know who you are, we saw the final’. So that completely moved me.
“Then he talked to us for 40 minutes.”
Kolisi went on to explain how his admiration for Steven Gerrard as a young man, particularly his leadership skills, “touched his heart.”
As a World Cup winner, let’s hope Kolisi had some inspiring advice for Liverpool players as they embark on their busy pre-World Cup schedule!
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