Tonight will be Jurgen Klopp’s 400th game in charge.
Tonight Jurgen Klopp will manage Liverpool for the 400th time, after first taking the reins in November 2015, and enjoying unprecedented success with the club ever since.
Albeit they are going through a very rough patch at the moment, there’s no doubt that Klopp will have plenty more good nights in charge of the Anfield faithful.
The German has guided his side through some incredibly dramatic games, but here SportsJOE have picked the top five of the Klopp era so far.
Liverpool 5 – 4 Norwich (January 2016)
This is when the DNA of Liverpool football started to evolve into Klopp’s relentless, all-out attacking style, filled with intensity and risk.
Heavy metal football was officially born on this day in Anfield, and although he did not possess the same personnel and quality that he later would, his style of play meant that scoring goals was inevitable.
In fact, conceding at the consequence of scoring seemed to be the only problem they had; this was of course before the purchase of Virgil van Dijk and Alisson Becker.
On this day however, Liverpool went through every range of emotion, going 1-0 up, then 3-1 down, and with everything eventually all square at 4-4, it took a magical last gasp winner from Adam Lallana to secure victory for the Reds.
Liverpool 4-3 Manchester City (January 2018)
With the style of play now fully learnt, rehearsed and understood, this was the year Liverpool got the right people in to start perfecting it.
Sadio Mané, Mohammad Salah and Roberto Firmino were just beginning to cement themselves as the all-powerful front three that would come to be feared by defenders everywhere.
Andy Robertson had broken onto the team at left back, and suddenly they were full of dynamism and options going forward, and despite going down 1-0 to the eventual champions, they put their foot on the acceleration pedal and never let go.
When all of the talk was about Pep Guardiola’s side mimicking The Invincibles, those in the KOP side had other plans, as goals from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Mané, Firmino and a delicious lob from Salah made sure Liverpool came out on top.
Liverpool 5-0 Manchester United (October 2021)
Even in the wildest dreams of Liverpool fans growing up watching United dominate the domestic scene year after year, did they ever think they would watch such a dismantling of their fierce rivals.
The fact that it was at Old Trafford, with the Salah hat trick, and the urge and desire to keep finding more goals even when the game was clearly won – it proved something to the fans that they only dared to dream of before – Liverpool were far better than United.
Even in past victories, it always felt like the Reds got away with one, and relief would be the overwhelming emotion more than anything, but on this day, Klopp highlighted that only were Liverpool better, but the gap was big.
Liverpool 2-0 Tottenham (May 2019)
Only one year on from reaching their first European final since 2007 and losing out to Real Madrid, did Jurgen’s men return to the grand stage, to right the wrongs of their past.
It wasn’t an exciting game, but it ended with so many lingering and annoying questions that pestered Liverpool fans: Could Jordan Henderson lead the team like Steven Gerrard? Was Mo Salah a one-hit wonder? Could Klopp win finals? Were Liverpool merely a selling club?
With a little dance and trophy lift from their captain, Liverpool had once again won the greatest trophy in football, and not only that, but started a domino effect that would see them lift several more in quick succession.
Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona (April 2019)
If you were to write this game down as a fictional story, publishers would bin it and claim that it wasn’t realistic or believable enough for people to buy.
With 3-0 down on aggregate, and the threat that conceding a single goal to Barcelona would end their Champions League journey, against a team that had Philipe Coutinho, Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi – it was impossible.
On top of all this, to even win the game, they had to score four unreplied goals – all without their star striker Mohammad Salah, who was out with injury.
It was ridiculous, magical, and incomprehensible, but it happened, and it will forever go down as the era-defining victory of the Jurgen Klopp reign.
Related links:
- Damien Delaney questions Jurgen Klopp over Liverpool’s injury list
- Virgil van Dijk explains what it’s like when Jurgen Klopp loses his cool
- Tim Sherwood predicts that Jurgen Klopp will leave Liverpool at the end of the season
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