Klopp may have won nothing yet ... but his time with Liverpool must be judged as a success
LET’S get it out of the way before we start. Jurgen Klopp has won nothing with Liverpool. Nought, nil, nada, zero, zilch, zip.
Last Monday marked the third anniversary of his arrival at Anfield.
This coming Wednesday will mark the third anniversary of his first match as manager – a goalless draw at White Hart Lane, in which his team summoned up three shots on target.
In his first Premier League home game a week later – a soporific 1-1 draw with Southampton – Liverpool managed only two shots on target, one of which resulted in Christian Benteke’s goal.
It was not a terrible squad he inherited, as was demonstrated by subsequent away victories at Stamford Bridge and the Etihad, but it was not fit for Klopp’s purpose.
Arguably, no elite club squad has been overhauled to the extent Klopp has overhauled his during the past three years.
To do so, Klopp has had to compromise what appeared to be some very noble beliefs. And he admits it. In the lavish purchases of Virgil van Dijk (below) and goalkeeper Alisson, there has been a strong element of not being able to beat them, so joining them.
He is a chequebook manager just like Jose Mourinho, Pep Guardiola and whoever happens to be in the Chelsea chair on any given date.
And for the sort of investment made during his time, and for the size of the club, that first trophy as Liverpool manager cannot come quickly enough. Klopp knows that. Since winning the Bundesliga in 2011/12 with Borussia Dortmund, he has mostly found a way to NOT win trophies.
Yet, when reading an interview he did to mark this three-year staging post, it is impossible not to gauge his time at Liverpool as anything other than a success.
Why? Because he has made his club’s supporters happy.
He gets his club, he gets the city, he gets the fans, he gets the history. And maybe, in this day and age when material and palpable achievement seem paramount, that is an intangible we all underestimate.
“I have said it a few times,” he remarked in the interview, “I have no idea when we will win something, but I am sure this club will win something. I don’t know when, so let’s have the best times of our lives until then.
“Let’s enjoy the world, let’s enjoy the football, let’s enjoy the journey. It’s what we did so far – it was a good time.”
Klopp takes it as seriously as any other manager who turns slightly crazed in the technical area, but he sees the broader picture of what a club should mean to its community.
And he understands that, in football, “the best times of our lives” are not exclusively dependent on winning the Carabao Cup.
This generation of Liverpool fans is watching some of the best football of their lives. As much as trophies, that has to count for something.
“There are more important things in the world out there than football,” Klopp said, not for the first time.
“But when you go to a match, there is nothing more important because you’ve decided already, ‘I’m forgetting all other things, I go the stadium, I want to have the best 95 minutes of the week, month, of my life, whatever’.
“I can still feel how special it is and how blessed I am that I am really part of that.
“In this moment, being a Liverpool supporter or employee is fantastic, it just feels great.”
Yes, outside the confines of his adopted city, Klopp will be judged mainly by his trophy count.
Yes, he needs to win one soon, as has been pointed out here on many occasions.
But listen to the way he talks about his club and see how happy he has made his club’s supporters and it is hard for even the most demanding observer to consider his three years as anything other than a success.