BUT NOT LEGENDS
Consistent, talented and well-drilled.. Souness delivers verdict on Klopp’s Class of 2020
GRAEME SOUNESS believes Liverpool’s players will be kicking themselves for having won only two major trophies after two years of brilliance under Jurgen Klopp.
The former Scotland star, who managed and skippered the Anfield side, says it’s only a matter of time before Liverpool get their hands on the Premier League trophy to end a 30-year wait.
But Souness reckons it’ll take another three years for them to be mentioned in the same breath as the team that dominated Europe in the early 80s.
The ex-Rangers player-boss, Sky Sports’ top pundit, loves watching Klopp’s side in action but is adamant they’ll be feeling they should’ve picked up more than last year’s Champions League and World Club trophies.
He said: “Consistency. That’s first word that comes to mind when I compare this Liverpool side to those I played in.
“This team have been so consistent for the last couple of seasons. They are fabulous. They have some outstanding players and all know what they’re doing.
“They’ve got ridiculously good flair players in the right areas. They’ve got some proper defenders, a wonderful goalkeeper and a workaholic midfield. They’ve been so dominant this season. “They won the Champions League last year and are going to win the Premier League now but I still think Jurgen will look back at this period and feel they should have won more. “To have been so good and so consistent and yet only won two big trophies, the players have got to be a bit angry at themselves about that. “In the modern world, we are keen to attach greatness to people and teams too early. The time to ask that question about this group of players will be in five years. The challenge for them now is to win the big trophies consistently and establish prolonged dominance like Liverpool teams of the past. “In five years, if they have dominated the Premier League, if they have dominated the Champions League, then they can be considered as good as any team Liverpool has ever had. But to become a legendary team, you’ve got to become serial winners.” Souness, speaking to Sky Sports, heaped praise on Klopp’s front three and singled out Roberto Firmino for high praise, comparing the Brazilian to Liverpool and Scotland legend Kenny Dalglish.
He said: “Mo Salah might score the most goals but it would be totally wrong to say this side’s attack is just about him. He’s one of three very special players.
“I love watching Firmino play. I liken him to Dalglish. He’s like a big cat walking through the jungle waiting for an opportunity to do damage. His radar is on all the time and he has a great football brain.
“Salah and Sadio Mane, they’ll catch your eye more because they are direct and score more goals.
“They’re a wonderful attacking unit but it’s so important to have a really good defence – you can’t play super football every game you play.
“It’s sad for them how this season panned out but they will get their hands on that Premier League trophy soon enough.
“It’s still too early to compare them to the great Liverpool teams of the past. There is a long way to go for that. But the potential is there. Everything is in place for them to reach that level.
“It helps to have a challenger like Manchester City. You don’t want it to be a one-horse race. It would make you complacent and it would diminish the Premier League as a spectacle.
“We didn’t have one single rival during my time at Liverpool. Each year it was someone different. Nottingham Forest had a couple of remarkable years. Aston Villa had a remarkable year. Ipswich had a good team and Manchester United challenged us one year.
“But there wasn’t one obvious challenger. Arsenal, Tottenham, Chelsea, Manchester United – they will all want to climb the table in the next few years but I still think City will be Liverpool’s strongest challengers.
“Given the ages of the players in that Liverpool squad, given where they are, given the manager they’ve got and the structure around the team, they have the potential to go on and become serial winners.
“These players, especially the goalkeeper and the defenders, could play together for another five years easily. The signings they have made have been off the charts and Jurgen deserves huge credit for the work he has done.
“He is a great fit for Liverpool because he feels the emotion of the place. Liverpool’s an extremely emotional football club, with its history, its tragedies. You get that emotion when you go to Anfield and hear You’ll Never Walk Alone.
“He is the polar opposite of what Bob Paisley and Joe Fagan were. They were happy to be in the background. Jurgen is more like (Bill) Shankly, a great communicator, a showman and leader of the pack.
“Jurgen is different. But he understands the club and he has done the most marvellous job.”