Five great games of Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool tenure
As we approach the six-year anniversary of Jürgen Klopp’s appointment as Liverpool manager, it’s worth taking stock of the German’s reign so far. When he took the job in 2015, even the most optimistic Liverpool fans could surely not have envisaged what followed. With four trophies under his belt, including the Champions League and the Premier League title, it’s been a period of immense success since Klopp took charge. Those who bet on football have frequently fancied a punt on the Reds.
In that time there have been some matches to really savour. Klopp is a man of intense emotion, wearing his heart on his sleeve as a badge of honour and that passion shines through in his teams’ system. Liverpool have played some of the best football in the club’s history duringhis tenure, and there have been several occasions which stick out in the mind as matches that will live long in the memory.
Liverpool 4-3 Borussia Dortmund, April 2016
It’s often forgotten that Liverpool reached two finals in Klopp’s first season in charge — the League Cup final and the Europa League final. The latter achievement would not have been possible without a sensational night at Anfield in the second leg of Liverpool’s quarter-final tie against Borussia Dortmund.
After a 1-1 draw in the first leg, Dortmund came to Anfield on a mission, and Marco Reus and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang silenced the home crowd with a goal apiece inside the first 10 minutes. A DivockOrigi goal shortly after half-time gave Liverpool hope, but Reus soon struck again to seemingly wrap things up.
But Liverpool rallied, and after goals from Philippe Coutinho and Mamadou Sakho, the tie was level.With the Reds needing one more goal to avoid going out on away goals in stoppage time, DejanLovren rose to meet James Milner’s cross and send the Kop into raptures.
Liverpool 4-3 Manchester City, January 2018
Manchester City were the team to beat in the 2017-18 Premier League season. They were unbeaten in the league until they came to Anfield in January 2018, before Liverpool dismantled Pep Guardiola’s side with a rip-roaring display of total football.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain opened the scoring after just nine minutes, but Leroy Sané pulled one back before half-time to ensure the scores were level at the break. The came the blitz. In a period of less than ten minutes in the second half, Liverpool put City to the sword, exploiting flaws that few thought existed in Guardiola’s winning machine. Goals from Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mané and Mohamed Salah put Liverpool in a commanding position.
Late goals from Bernardo Silva and İlkayGündoğan made the score more respectable for City, but Liverpool thoroughly deserved the win.
Liverpool 3-0 Manchester City, April 2018
Just a few months later, Liverpool and City met again, this time in the Champions League quarter-finals. Given City’s imperious form in the league, many felt they would have too much for Liverpool over two legs, but on a rip-roaring night at Anfield, Liverpool set their stall out in the first leg.
Salah was the man to put Liverpool in front, finding the net after just 12 minutes. Chamberlain doubled the lead just eight minutes later, sending a piledriver into the top corner, before Mané grabbed the hosts a third with just over half an hour played. Liverpool were relentless. City were shell-shocked.
There was to be no recovery from the visitors, and Liverpool ended up progressing 5-1 on aggregate. The two wins over Manchester City in 2018 undoubtedly set the tone for the Champions League and Premier League titles that would arrive in the following seasons.
Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona, May 2019
This match needs no introduction. Liverpool’s miraculous recovery in the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Barcelona is the defining match of Klopp’s reign, and one of the most memorable in the club’s history.
Trailing 3-0 from the first leg, Liverpool were firm second favourites in the football betting tips and needed a miracle. They got one. Origi gave them the lead in the early stages, but it wasn’t until the second half until things really exploded into life. A quickfire double from Georginio Wijnaldum brought the tie level, before Origi was on hand to convert from Trent Alexander-Arnold’s quick corner and send the Reds through to the final.
Nothing will ever beat the emotional scenes after that match, and Liverpool went on to seal a sixth European crown by beating Tottenham Hotspur in Madrid the following month.
Liverpool 2-0 Manchester United, January 2020
This was the defining moment in Liverpool’s title-winning campaign in 2019-20. The Reds were still unbeaten by the time Manchester United came to Anfield in January — in fact, United were the only side who had stopped them from winning up until that point, with a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford earlier in the season.
Virgil Van Dijk gave Liverpool a first half lead, and after surviving pressure from the visitors in the second period, Mohamed Salah countered in the closing moments and sealed a 2-0 victory. Cue delirium around Anfield, as Liverpool fans truly began to believe that this was the year they would end their 30-year wait for a 19th English top-flight title, with fans singing ‘we’re going to win the league’ for the first time in years.
