Klopp
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Hes been unbanned..
I was joking as much as he was..
@My_Blood_Bleeds_Red please refrain from using Tapatalk signatures in future
Ta..
I was joking as much as he was..
@My_Blood_Bleeds_Red please refrain from using Tapatalk signatures in future
Ta..
You should be able to.. I will look at it later
Phew.
I was silently confident the whole time. None taken. [emoji4]
Klopp made the right calls over both legs and got it spot on tactically. No complacency allowed and no time to dwell on previous results. The only game that matters is the next one.
Klopp has found the right balance in the team and gone are the days where our defence was a liability. VvD has had a major impact on the team and is only getting started. He has improved the backline immensely and will get even better. Robinson is a pretty special player and keeps growing in stature. TAA has been a revelation. Only 19, has an even brighter future ahead. Karius has stepped up and looks full of confidence.
Our squad is still thin but I'm sure that he'll re-inforce in the summer. Naby Keita looks like some player. Can't wait to see him in our shirt. Pretty exciting times ahead.
Klopp has found the right balance in the team and gone are the days where our defence was a liability. VvD has had a major impact on the team and is only getting started. He has improved the backline immensely and will get even better. Robinson is a pretty special player and keeps growing in stature. TAA has been a revelation. Only 19, has an even brighter future ahead. Karius has stepped up and looks full of confidence.
Our squad is still thin but I'm sure that he'll re-inforce in the summer. Naby Keita looks like some player. Can't wait to see him in our shirt. Pretty exciting times ahead.
Since the 4-1 defeat to Tottenham
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[article]I have heard Jürgen Klopp cite inspirations as varied as heavy metal music and Rocky Balboa so I wouldn’t be surprised if the Liverpool manager was also familiar with Aristotle. After all, Klopp showed in January that his football philosophy is very much in line with the great Greek thinker who believed that “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts”.
Klopp shocked many in the football world when almost four months ago he sanctioned the sale of his most technically gifted player, Philippe Coutinho, who had been outstanding in the first half of the season and did not replace him like for like, causing supporters and pundits to question everything from his judgment to his sanity. Instead he recruited a centre-back in Virgil van Dijk and trusted his instinct that the team would improve as a consequence.
If you reflect on some of the commentary and analysis of Liverpool at the end of the January transfer window you would assume that their performances would tail off without the genius and creativity of Coutinho and that they could not possibly withstand the loss of a world-class player.
Instead fast forward to mid‑April and I cannot remember a time when Liverpool have been in such a strong position and fans so hopeful in the both short and long term to fight for the top trophies at home and in Europe.
The narrative which Klopp has superbly orchestrated is a story about the victory of team functionality, philosophy and identity where the importance of team chemistry, understanding of individual roles within a system and collectivism is evident. This is vital in a sport where increasingly more importance is placed on the individual superstar and the size of transfer fees and wages that come with that kind of player.
What Liverpool have achieved this season, especially since Coutinho moved to Barcelona and they acquired Van Dijk, should be lauded and studied by fans, pundits and aspiring coaches such as me in understanding that success can be built even while losing top individual attacking players if you have a fundamental style of play that enables a team to outweigh the sum of its parts and produce not just winning football but get supporters of all allegiances off their seats every time they play.
Klopp has shown that you can improve a side while selling your best player if you cater to the needs of your most productive players in the way that you play and it is no coincidence that the signing of Alex Oxlade‑Chamberlain has tactically enabled the likes of Sadio Mané, Roberto Firmino and the outstanding Mo Salah to be even more of a threat.
Oxlade-Chamberlain, while a gifted footballer, does not have the technical ability of Coutinho but what he does bring is an athletic dynamism and power that Coutinho doesn’t possess and an extreme intensity which creates a platform for Liverpool’s lightning transitions where the likes of Mané and Salah cause havoc. It was evident in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final against Manchester City where in that first half their pressing, counterpressing and attacking transitions were incredible and I question whether, if Coutinho had been playing instead of Oxlade-Chamberlain, Liverpool would have been quite as dynamic, intense and productive.
Also, in addressing their need for a top centre-half Liverpool now possess an added defensive steel, giving their outstanding front three the opportunity and foundation to score and create goals. I also look at the fundamental way Klopp sets out his teams and the way that individuals within his system have improved because they know what is expected of them.
Andrew Robertson, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Mané, Salah, Firmino and even a veteran in James Milner are raising their game week after week and have played an integral part in implementing the principles of Klopp’s coaching while justifying the faith he places not on reputation or transfer fee but the performances of those he trusts.
It all comes down to team functionality and forward planning, and this can be achieved only with a top manager who understands and is faithful to his style of play regardless of the inevitable criticism he faces when times get tough. Pep Guardiola and Klopp have been criticised in this country for sticking to their football principles when results have not been up to scratch but this comes with the territory and is understandable, while the bigger picture shows that recruitment and improving the players on an individual level increases their monetary value and gives the football club a vision and plan for the longer term.
Selling Coutinho for almost £150m is a great example of this. He has been replaced in the team by a relatively young player in Oxlade-Chamberlain, who possesses a completely different football profile but fits perfectly into the team’s philosophy at the fraction of the price and has improved the team’s functionality and chemistry overall.
This is managerial genius and it not only keeps the fans happy but also the directors and shareholders who are always checking the club spreadsheets!
This Liverpool journey has only just begun and I am excited to see where it ends both this season and in years to come – but it is also a story of how we need to see the whole picture, as fans, coaches and in the media, that matches are rarely won by one superstar but by the collaboration and collectivism of 11 players committed to the functionality of the team.[/article]
Give that man a manager's job.
It's the team. It's always been the team at our place. Hopefully always will be. Any player that wants to leave, there's the door son.
[article]Accomplished journalist Rapahel Honigstein, author of the new Jurgen Klopp biography "Bring the Noise: The Jurgen Klopp Story," joins the Planet Fútbol Podcast to discuss Klopp and his role in Liverpool's rejuvenation.
Honigstein discusses Klopp's biggest influences, how he won over Liverpool's ownership in his interview, how he'll gameplan for the Champions League semifinals, how he's extracted the most from Mohamed Salah and other insider stories on the manager's rise to prominence, which are all detailed in the book.
Here is some of what Honigstein had to say, and the full conversation about Klopp and the process of writing the book can be heard in the podcast console below and on iTunes, where you can subscribe to our show and listen to every episode.
GRANT WAHL: Why has Klopp, in both Germany and England, had more success against Pep Guardiola in your opinion than other managers?
RAPHAEL HONIGSTEIN: I think the characteristics of a Jurgen Klopp team are sort of kryptonite for a Pep Guardiola team. They like to disrupt teams. They like to break up their passing patterns. They're very aggressive. They take up the space and the time that Guardiola's passing teams thrive on. And they are usually very deadly and dangerous on the counterattack, which again, if you're a possession side, is bad news.
It takes a tremendous amount of effort, it takes a tremendous amount of mental fortitude and aggression to play that way. It's also no coincidence that Guardiola's teams, aside from being better equipped, have done better domestically than Klopp's sides. But on a knockout, one-off occasion, these are the sort of teams that if you're Guardiola you really do not enjoy playing against. Klopp once more showed that he has perhaps not Pep Guardiola's number, but certainly a way that can be very effective against his brand of football.
GW: What in your mind, having written this book now, having followed Klopp for so many years, what makes him kind of a singular figure at this point in world soccer?
RH: I don't know if he's a singular figure. I think he does something very well–which is the mark of any successful manager–which is to bring both the human and emotional intelligence to a very keen intellect, and a willingness to learn and to come up with ideas and create something that is bigger than the sum of their parts. He's never been in charge of a team that was a favorite to win any of the competitions that they've taken part in, but he has won stuff and he's come very close with teams that nobody really expected to be that close and that successful. So he's clearly doing something very right, and he clearly has the ability–and also that's part of his strategy–to tap into a collective identity to bring out a synergy between the crowd, the stadium, the city, the club, including all its employees, and the players and create that energy that even if it's intangible drives players a little bit further than they would otherwise reach.
We've seen it very clearly at Mainz, they had absolutely no right to be promoted to the Bundesliga and stay there when he was there. We've seen it at Dortmund, who nobody thought could win German titles and get to the Champions League final. And we're beginning to see it at Liverpool, where of course, in absolute terms, he's worked with a lot more money than he's ever had at his disposal before, but in relative terms they're still not the biggest team in Europe, they're not even the wealthiest team in the northwest of England. So there is something that he does that kind of negates all those disadvantages and makes a lot, perhaps even the maximum, of the stuff that he finds at his disposal.
Just to give you a little snippet that's not in the book, Carlo Ancelotti was also interviewed for the Liverpool job, and the first thing he told FSG [Liverpool owner Fenway Sports Group], was, 'Yes we need a new center back, we need a new really strong central midfielder and we need a top striker, because we need strength all through the spine.' And then Klopp came up ... and Klopp said, 'First of all we need to activate the crowd, we need to make sure that they get behind the team because football is not just about tactics and buying big players, football is about winning tackles, football is about energy, football is about euphoria, football is about plugging into something that is bigger than the team.' And you can guess how that went. The proof is in the pudding. But if you didn't know, you'd have a good idea of who they preferred as their manager.
GW: At Liverpool, in what ways do you think Klopp has succeeded the most and in what areas has he continued to struggle a bit at times?
RH: Well I think it's been a real learning curve for him, to start with the negatives. To really adapt and adjust his methods to life in the Premier League. I think the lack of a winter break, the crazy rhythm of matches, the physical demands. The strength when it comes to very straightforward football from the opposition, which kind of introduces an element of randomness which is hard to deal with if you don't have the exact players equipped for that. Hence the pursuit of [Virgil] Van Dijk this year. Those are all things that he had to learn and is still learning. He's honest along with his team of coaches that this is an ongoing process, that they couldn't quite come and have the answers already, and perhaps it has taken a bit longer than people have anticipated.
At the same time, I think what he has succeeded in, irrespective of the outcome of the season, is he's created very positive momentum. Liverpool fans are once again really excited to go to Anfield. They're looking forward to exciting football. They have a sense that they can beat anyone. They don't need to be in the shadow of any of their rivals or neighbors. All these things are worth a lot when you consider that he took over the club in October 2015 just how demoralized and almost depressed the whole fanbase was after a very poor start to the season and very dull and methodical football under Brendan Rodgers. It's really changed by 180 degrees and that sense of excitement and going places has definitely returned to Liverpool thanks to him.[/article]
Was this posted ages ago? Come on Jonno - Don't be daft. Having said that we all have things that irk us. Why just today I went 'Guns Of Navarone' on one of my bezzer's because the twat was 20mins late meeting me. I asked her why and she said she was busy sorting out what to wear! Among my circle of mates I'm known as being a bit of a moody cunt when it comes to people being late. Maybe I'm just a moody cunt full stop. Hey ho 🙂
While I am happy to see Klopp getting praise for his work (and he deserves it), I am wondering if these articles can wait till the end of the season. We really haven't won anything yet. Also there is no need to critique other managers while praising Klopp.
But if you read to the major point of the article, you'd realize that it was more about Klopp's philosophy and the direction he's wanted to take the club, and still does, as opposed to his success here.
Full 17 min interview:
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[article]Jürgen Klopp is calm and serene. His face lights up, of course, at the prospect of “the mighty battle” which awaits Liverpool on Tuesday when Roma arrive at Anfield for the first leg of their Champions League semi-final. He also leans forward animatedly when assessing the intriguing challenge the Italians will pose. Yet, beyond the cliche of Klopp as a madly gurning cheerleader on the touchline, the 50-year-old German proved, again, his tactical nous and inspirational management while guiding Liverpool to three victories this season over the feted Premier League champions Manchester City. The 5-1 aggregate defeat of City in the quarter-finals was exhilarating and resilient.
It is striking how, at Liverpool’s training ground, Klopp is also stimulated when discussing real life and tangled politics, Brexit and Angela Merkel. There are moments in a free-wheeling conversation when the hilarity feels unstoppable as Klopp considers a claim that he would win an election to become German chancellor because of his attention to detail, communication skills and empathy. But there are many more thoughtful moments – particularly when Klopp addresses the vexed issue of Brexit and his belief that British people should have the chance to vote again on their future in or outside the EU.
We start, however, with Klopp reminiscing about his youthful desire to become a doctor. That teenage ambition chimes with his persistent interest in helping people “get better every day” and his work with players, from Mo Salah to Dejan Lovren, who improve in contrasting ways.
“I was young when I thought about becoming a doctor,” Klopp says with a smile as he remembers growing up in the Black Forest village of Glatten. “I had the idea three years before my A-level. But to study medicine your A-level results had to be fantastic. So it was good for all the people who would have been under my knife that I didn’t make it. But it was close to be honest.”
That wistful sentence is swamped by his laughter. But the idea of Dr Klopp is not outlandish. He exudes a warmth and intelligence we would all want to see in a doctor. “I have this helping syndrome,” Klopp says. “I really care about people and I feel responsible for pretty much everything.”
Klopp’s inclusive leadership, ensuring everyone feels nurtured and needed, is at the root of his success. Is he also becoming a scouser as his immersion in Liverpool runs so deep? Klopp grins, brandishing his cup: “There’s this tea, for example. When we come somewhere new my family like to adapt. We want to live like people here. I’m not a guy who says: ‘By the way, I want to tell you in Germany we do it like this or that.’ We look so similar but we are very different too. It’s really interesting. My boys both work in Germany but they are football maniacs so they’re very often here. They tell me about the nightlife and I experience the country in the daytime.”
Does life on this small island seem insular, particularly when the political landscape has shifted dramatically since he arrived? “I’ve heard it said that English people are not looking outwards but I don’t see it. I live in Formby and work in Liverpool. I drive from here to there and sometimes I’m in different cities for games. So I don’t know enough about the country but many people come to Britain because English is the language the world speaks.
“I can’t say Germany is more open. If you ask the wrong people in Germany they would say: ‘Yes, we want a fence to keep foreigners out and, by the way, could you make is as high as the [Berlin] Wall.’ Europe has been strange the last few years. I like to go to Austria for skiing but they only push [immigrants] through to Mrs Merkel. Being a leader in this situation is not a joy. There is no easy solution.”
The option favoured by the Brexiteers, however, seems misguided and dispiriting. “I understand,” Klopp says. “I’m not the best-informed person but I’m very interested in it. When Mr Cameron had the idea [of a referendum] you thought: ‘This is not something people should decide in a moment.’ We are all influenced by the way only some of the argument is given, and once the decision is taken nobody gives you a real opportunity to change it again. The choice was either you stay in Europe, which is not perfect, or you go out into something nobody has any idea how it will work.
“So you give people the chance to make this big decision. And then it’s a 51-49 [51.9%-48.1%] vote and you’re thinking: ‘Wow, 49% are not happy with the decision that’s going to change the country.’ For the 51%, I’m sure they realised pretty early after the vote: ‘What have we done?’
“The two leaders of the Leave campaign then stepped aside. It was a pure sign they were surprised themselves by the vote. OK, that can happen. But then, come on, let’s sit together again. Let’s think about it again and let’s vote again with the right information – not with the information you’ve got around the Brexit campaign. They were obviously not right, not all of them. It makes no sense at all.
“When I speak to people they say: ‘I wanted to stay [in Europe] but I don’t want to talk about it because I don’t feel it yet as a person.’ I feel it constantly because since I came here the pound dropped. People go on holiday and say: ‘Spain is very expensive!’ But it’s only because the pound is not that strong any more. The EU is not perfect but it was the best idea we had. History has always shown that when we stay together we can sort out problems. When we split then we start fighting. There was not one time in history where division creates success. So, for me, Brexit still makes no sense.”
This embrace of Europe does not mean Klopp is disparaging towards British footballers. More than most Premier League clubs he has an English core to his squad. Jordan Henderson, James Milner, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Adam Lallana, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joe Gomez, Nathaniel Clyne, Dominic Solanke and Danny Ings are joined by other bright young talents such as Scotland’s Andrew Robertson and Wales’ Ben Woodburn.
“They are here because they’re really good – not because they’re English or British. But if you have two players at the same level and one is English and the other is from somewhere else I always go for the English guy. They keep the mood good and for them it’s easy to feel the club’s history. But we have fantastic boys from all over the world and they love the club. Roberto Firmino has such a Liverpool heart. But the English guys lead the group. Tottenham and us we are pretty much the English national team and I like that.”
Liverpool’s, and the PFA’s, Player of the Season is Egyptian. Salah faces his former club on Tuesday. Klopp’s acumen in signing Salah from Roma has been underlined and a £35m transfer fee now smacks of a bargain. “Mo did very well at Roma but they have Edin Dzeko who is an outstanding striker. So it was their tactics to sometimes play him wide. Now, a year older, he came to us full of confidence. He scored in the first game but missed two big chances. So, unbelievably, he could have scored much more [than the 41 goals Salah has this season]. We have learned about him step by step because he plays constantly in the same position. This season is more about interpretation [of his goalscoring talent] and because Bobby Firmino is a workhorse he really gives Mo space. I’ve had many talks with Mo and he sees what the others do for him.”
Did he spend much time assessing Salah’s character before signing him? “I always meet the player before we sign. That’s when I decide because I have a good feeling for people. It was a fantastic talk. He’s open, smiling all the time. He has crazy curls but he’s a really nice boy. He also looked much more mature than it says on his passport. Twenty-four? I was: ‘Wow, really?’ We talked for three hours about everything from his family to my family and at the end we had a deal to work together. I like to remind players from time to time of that agreement. It’s working really well with Mo.”
Lovren has had a more testing season and mistakes against Spurs and Manchester United meant that many Liverpool fans denounced him. But his resurgence has been marked and, against City, he was a clear leader. “There are some really difficult things in Liverpool,” Klopp says. “The whole Liverpool family is not happy with not winning big trophies since whenever – so you always find a reason. ‘The problem is we don’t spend enough.’ Or, ‘The players make mistakes’. So, really, it’s a difficult job to be Liverpool’s goalkeeper. I’m not sure who was the last goalkeeper everybody was happy with here. It would be a while ago. And if you are not Sami Hyypia then your life as a defender is also difficult.
“I don’t exactly know about Dejan’s start at Liverpool but he made a few mistakes. People always have that in mind: ‘Oh, Lovren again!’ But I’m long in the business. I said to Dejan: ‘If somebody told me, come on, you have the chance, create a centre-half. We found a way to do it, genetically, bam, bam, bam.’ That’s him, strong, quick, both feet, can head like crazy, jumps through the roof. He’s all you need. Yes, a few things you can improve – his concentration. But these are human beings.
“Other centre-halves make mistakes. Against City, Virgil van Dijk, an outstanding person and fantastic player, should have cleared the ball before they scored. Virgil knows that. But nobody spoke about it because we won. It doesn’t look like it but I’m really relaxed in judging these things. When I see talent, and I’m convinced, I am calm.”
Liverpool now face a formidable test – despite a widely held belief that Roma are the weakest club in the semi-finals. “Roma are interesting,” Klopp says. “We’re expecting a mighty battle. They have Dzeko, they brought in the young Czech guy [Patrik] Schick and the young Turk [Cengiz Ünder]. Fantastic. [Daniele] De Rossi controls the midfield. Their defence is really experienced. Alisson is a fantastic goalkeeper. They beat Barcelona. They were first in their group, they didn’t concede a goal at home so far in the Champions League. There are many impressive things about them.”
It helps that Klopp has been here before although, when we remember our previous interview, before Dortmund lost to Bayern Munich in the 2013 Champions League final, he grimaces. “I’ve never watched it back. It’s too painful.”
Manchester City felt Champions League pain against Liverpool – but soothed themselves by winning the league with five games to spare. How close are Liverpool to a concerted tilt at City’s title next season? “It’s an interesting question because while we improved a lot they do the same. You can’t imagine that City, after a brilliant season, will say: ‘Oh, that’s so good we’ll keep the same squad.’ They will find new players. I also noticed an interesting thing. Their club has more money than every club in the world but I saw the City boys celebrating in a really nice way in the pub. It showed a real team.”
It has been another draining season but Klopp looks fit and well. He was said to have suffered a minor health scare in November when he went to hospital. “We all go for a check now and then but nobody knows. It was actually a funny situation. They tried to bring me in through the back door but the security guy has a walkie-talkie and he says: ‘Klopp is in the house!’ But, really, I’m fine. I love the job but if somebody told me: ‘If you carry on you will die much earlier’ then I’d say immediately: ‘Thank you. I’m on the road home.’”
He looks intrigued when I point out that, after spending seven years each at Mainz and Dortmund as manager, his Liverpool contract runs until 2022. He will then have completed a third seven-year stint at a club with whom he has fallen in love. “The seven years is a coincidence. When you have a marriage and if you’re past your seventh year then you’re OK. But, actually, I don’t need this kind of settling. It’s not in my nature. But when I am in a club I am in it totally.”
Liverpool are lucky to have him but, thinking of that seven-year cycle, I joke with Klopp that some people have another job in mind for him. Martin Quast, a German sportswriter, said: “If Klopp wanted to run for German president, he would get elected. He would bring people together, lead the way, make people happy.”
After Klopp has stopped laughing he explains that Quast is from Mainz. “Maybe in 2004 I could have been chancellor of Mainz. But I have absolutely no skills apart from being interested in politics. I would enjoy it if a politician spoke like a normal person but the job is complex. So we should care about our good people in politics because there’re not many of them. It’s like being a football manager. Many people are interested in football but only a few combine all the skills. Politics is even more difficult. I could never do it – or want to do it.”
Klopp as German chancellor would still be fun and maybe he could find a way to help Brexit Britain. “Hmmm,” Klopp says with mock seriousness. “Angela Merkel has two weeks off a year. That’s less holiday than I have which means that’s absolutely not my target. On holiday everybody is following her. She’s in the mountains having a nice hike and every year the same picture of Angela and her husband. I really like her and she’s doing an unbelievable job. But it’s a very difficult job – which is not as well paid as a football manager either. I will stick with Liverpool.”[/article]
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He's a little obsessed with Brexit, isn't he
[article]Listen to those in his corner often enough and you learn that Jürgen Klopp has an unshakable commitment to his own instincts, not only when choosing which path to follow but which ones he should not. Bayern Munich is likely to fall into the second category. Having the fortitude to say “no” comes easily and actually, this defines him.
In his own words, Klopp will “never vote for the right”, yet even with the best attempts of Liverpudlians to cast him as a socialist, a picture of a liberal develops, albeit one with an acute social conscience. It might not be enough for some, for those who claim liberalism is dead in politics and society, making them wonder why the hell is should exist anywhere in sport, particularly in a key leadership position.
Klopp, though, has many followers. He is a German fifty-year-old who was born in the 1960s. He was 22 when the Berlin Wall fell, uniting the country under one banner. This was a period not without its problems, but it did try to be inclusive and this in part goes some way to explaining Klopp the person as well as Klopp the manager because both are the same.
He does not rush judgements as Simon Mignolet should really be humble enough to admit one day. Instead Klopp gives as many chances as possible, sometimes more than others would. He places faith in young people; he does not overspend but he spends when he feels there is value. He is caring, but he will come down hard on those who let him down or if he thinks you are wrong.
He is decisive rather than ruthless.
When he says “no”, however, he means it. Mamadou Sakho flouting the rules? That didn’t happen for long. Liverpool supporters throwing objects at a billionaire’s bus? It stops because he told them to stop. Brexit and Britain putting up its own invisible wall between itself and Europe? A bad idea.
As someone with a track record for making the right decisions in life, decisions that have taken him from a modest country background to being manager of major urban centre football clubs while remaining the same person he was in Glatten only wiser, maybe he is worth listening to him about issues that transcend football even if the instinct is to say it’s a bit like Theresa May blabbering about Mohamed Salah’s continued brilliance. Klopp does not start every sentence with, “Let me be absolutely clear…” only to be as clear as the Mersey river about what he really thinks or wants to do.
Bill Shankly spoke about ideology when he was Liverpool’s manager but he did not like politicians. It was only in retirement when he entertained Harold Wilson, the Labour Prime Minister on a series of radio shows. Klopp is not an incarnate of Shankly but in terms of being about his own values and transmitting them not only to his players but those who support Liverpool and even those that don’t – considering too what he might yet achieve – he is the closest manager Liverpool have had to the one that first led the club out of the darkness and into the light.
Klopp's Liverpool is a "cult", as Marco Streller, the former Swiss centre forward said on German television last month. Liverpool, of course, is where the cult of the manager began under the guidance of Shankly.
In Germany, indeed, there is a feeling that if Klopp decided to run for president, his popularity would result in him getting voted in. If Merseyside was to break free of Brexit Britain and announce itself as an independent people’s republic like some in the area half-jokingly suggest it should, Klopp - with a Champions League title behind him - would have the the level of backing to take office.
Klopp’s “Make Anfield Great Again” campaign has been rolling since 2015. Only this one has substance. Three weeks before Klopp arrived on Merseyside, a full-strength Liverpool’s confidence was so low, the team could not beat Carlisle United over 120 minutes, scoring only once against fourth tier opposition.
Klopp, so usually as expressive as anyone else in the stadium, was one of the calmest last night, as goals number one, two, three and four flew in, taking Liverpool to the brink of a final that nobody at the start of the season would have predicted. When Roberto Firmino headed Liverpool’s fifth goal, Klopp looked at the floor, biting the zip on his jacket, as if this position is a natural one to be in.
Klopp has given hope where there was previously very little. Even if Liverpool do not win a sixth European crown – even if from here Roma end up going through because their two late goals have given them a sniff of belief – it does not mean Klopp has failed
Klopp is building a team in the finest Liverpool traditions, one with a group of players you wouldn’t have necessarily pinned together and claimed confidently they’d have a chance. Roma were the perfect opponent to connect the dots in many ways because in 1984 when Liverpool went to the Eternal City and beat them on their own patch, the backgrounds of the players involved were similar to now.
Liverpool’s goalkeeper came from Vancouver via the Rhodesian bush war, the right back was on the verge of giving up a career in football when he signed from Northampton, Alan Kennedy – scorer of the winning penalty kick – had started his Liverpool career so badly that Bob Paisley suggested they’d shot the wrong Kennedy; Mark Lawrenson was the lanky kid at Preston North End that nobody rated who only got his chance in the reserves because of sickness, Ronnie Whelan came from Home Farm, and Alan Hansen was thought of as being lazy by his manager, the formidable Bertie Auld – one of Celtic’s Lisbon Lions. Kenny Dalglish, in fairness, was signed as a star, then there was Sammy Lee whose mum made him beans on toast before every home game. Ian Rush would become the club’s greatest goalscorer but 18 months before Rome he was wondering whether he’d make it at Liverpool at all and could have signed for Crystal Palace. Finally, there was Craig Johnston, who trained alone in a cold Middlesbrough car park when Jack Charlton roared at him, saying he was not good enough.
Liverpool’s current goalkeeper was recycled by Mainz after release from Manchester City, the right back is a teenager from the academy, the left back came from relegated Hull. There are three former Southampton players as well as one from Sunderland; Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain warmed the bench at Arsenal, then you have a veteran journeyman in James Milner. Mohamed Salah carries the star status and the fee of Dalglish but he is also a Chelsea reject. The centre forward was not spotted by any of Brazil’s top clubs and arrived from Hoffenheim without anyone other than Klopp really understanding his best position.
Klopp, like his most decorated predecessors, has an ability to turn pig iron into gold. He has seen what others have not been able to see. He has an advantage of understanding players more because he was one himself. He understands people because he was not famous until he became a manager. He understands that if you give people hope, you have a chance of succeeding as a manager.
It was during a conversation with the German journalist with Christoph Biermann, whose book focuses on the importance of football to the industrial Ruhr region, where he reflected on Borussia Dortmund’s improbable victory over Malaga in 2012. It was “one of those stories that will be told in twenty years-time,” he said. “My motivation is to collect that kind of stuff, for people to tell and retell it.” Football, he believes, is a shared collection of stories, a shared history and identity.
The number of stories told about Klopp are reaching Shankly-esque proportions. In writing his book, Feel the Noise, Raphael Honigstein, the well-connected German writer, found there was simply too much information to include. One of the stories that did not make the final edit came from a director at the car firm Opel, who told him about the occasion when Klopp stood on a stage before 10,000 workers at an annual convention. The talk developed into more of a performance and by the end, the audience were chanting his name.
Maybe everything you really need to know about Klopp is revealed when you later find that for these type of endorsements, he gives the proceeds to his assistants, Peter Krawietz and Željko Buvač, even though they are not involved. Klopp thinks he earns enough and without them, he would not be where he is. Again, it explains why he is loved and why he is followed. Now, it is Liverpudlians following him to Rome. For them, it is like entering the threshold of a promised land.[/article]
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It really does feel like this might be the time we have waited nearly 30 years for.
Not yet because we still fuck up the basics in the league
Yes, we have solved the 20 goal striker conundrum with Salah, but we've also drawn far too many games because we concede far too many goals.
We've conceded the most goals out of the Top 5, 12 more than the Champions and 11 more than United in second place. That needs fixing next, and then we can talk about being genuine title contenders.
Depth is the key. Another centre back to relegated lovren to the bench, and backup for robbo.
Trent is now a mainstay I think and clyne is perfect back up.
Karius....I honestly don't mind and will improve. If we're being quoted 60m for a keeper, then unless he's guaranteed success for a decade I dunno if it's worth it
Not really though, since Spurs we've been impressive,
Yeah, but the problem is that to win the league you need to be impressive for a long period of time. Ideally the entirety of the league season.
And before spurs?
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