Jurgen Klopp has done an exceptional job at Liverpool, no argument.
He has not only injected new life into the Anfield giants, he has also re-established the identity and purpose of a great club.
As often happens in these cases, people are getting a little carried away, with Stan Collymore even claiming he has already outstripped Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola in the race for Premier League immortality.
Not Klopp. He retains a sense of perspective which is admirable, even when it seemed like the Covid-19 pandemic might rob his club of their first league title for 30 years.
His evisceration of Boris Johnson’s bumbling government just added to the sense that the German is much more than simply a top-class football manager.
Liverpool are just two wins away from that goal now, and they deserve the title – they have been outstanding this season.
But the clamour around him and his team is premature. That is not a controversial statement, Klopp and his players would agree with it, no question.
But when you see former Liverpool striker Collymore claiming that Klopp has already achieved more in English football than Guardiola, you need to take a step back.
Writing in The Mirror , Collymore reasoned: “In terms of what he has achieved in England, I’d even put Klopp ahead of Guardiola now. Manchester City were already four, five or six years into a project when Guardiola arrived at the Etihad, whereas Klopp pretty much had a standing start at Anfield by comparison.
“I know some people will point to the £75million-plus Klopp splurged on Virgil van Dijk and £56million on Alisson. But others have spent those sorts of sums several times over without the return Klopp is enjoying.”
Several times over? I think Stan needs a new calculator.
It is true that Guardiola has out-spent Klopp, by roughly 50 per cent. But that figure is reduced considerably when you add in the fact that Klopp took over at Anfield a few weeks after a transfer window in which the club had spent £77million, principally on Roberto Firmino and Christian Benteke.
He had a nine-month head start on Guardiola in terms of embedding his ideas and his philosophy in the Liverpool psyche, and yet his trophy haul – in four seasons – stands at one Champions League.
Guardiola came in later, and has two Premier League titles, both shot through with record achievements, three League Cups and an FA Cup.
So in terms of “what he has achieved in England”, as Stan puts it, the scoreline is a pretty emphatic 6-1 to the Catalan.
The other part of Collymore’s analysis does not stand up to much scrutiny, either.
He says that Guardiola started from a much better position than Klopp, as he inherited a “project” that had been going on for five years.
But Guardiola actually inherited a squad which was past its sell-by date, as evidenced by the fact they finished fourth in Manuel Pellegrini’s farewell season, 15 points adrift of champions Leicester.
They had four ageing full backs who needed replacing, had Yaya Toure coming to the end of his colossal career and the totemic Vincent Kompany gingerly treading an uncertain path from pitch to treatment room.
And, given Guardiola’s football beliefs, a more radical overhaul was needed, replacing the goalkeeper, centre backs, midfielders and wide players.
Klopp also required extensive change, and his spending reflects that.
Guardiola has spent 50 per cent more – about £628million to Klopp’s £401million, if you don’t include Firmino and Benteke – but has won six times as many trophies.
None of this is a criticism of Klopp, who looks well set to become a legendary Premier League manager.
His runaway success this season comes off the back of a £240million splurge which even City's extravagant history cannot match.
But Guardiola – even though he would reject the accolade outright – is already at that level, in terms of his impact on the way football is played, in terms of the quality of his team’s football and in terms of translating that into silverware.
