Jurgen Klopp has announced his decision to leave Liverpool at the end of the 2023/24 season after eight and a half years at the club. The news came as a huge shock to the footballing world with the legendary manager’s contract not expiring until 2026.
Here, we look back at some of the most unbelievable moments from his tenure as Liverpool manager.
Top Five – Jurgen Klopp Greatest Moments With Liverpool
Jürgen Klopp has announced his decision to step down as #LFC manager at the end of the season, having informed the club’s ownership of his wish to leave his position in the summer.
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) January 26, 2024
Liverpool 4-3 Borussia Dortmund
During Klopp’s first season at Anfield, Liverpool were drawn against their new manager’s former side, Borussia Dortmund, in the quarter-finals of the Europa League. Dortmund were the favourites in the tie, however, the Reds had earned a 1-1 draw in the first leg in Germany.
Any optimism of reaching the semi-finals was dashed early on in the second leg as Thomas Tuchel’s side raced into a 2-0 lead at Anfield within nine minutes. Liverpool pulled one back early in the second half but hopes of a comeback seemed slim when Mats Hummels slid Marco Reus in to all but end the tie.
Philippe Coutinho struck from outside the box to bring hope back to the Anfield faithful before Mamadou Sakho levelled the game with 13 minutes remaining. These were the days of away goals though, so Liverpool required one more if they were to progress. Step forward Dejan Lovren at the back post to head in a James Milner cross at the Kop end in the 91st minute to spark pandemonium amongst the watching crowd.
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Liverpool fans were not new to magical European nights under the Anfield lights nor unlikely comebacks but it gave supporters a glimpse of what life would be like under their new manager.
It should be noted that Liverpool had already been involved in a high-scoring classic during Klopp’s first campaign and a notable mention here goes to the clash at Carrow Road where a 95th-minute strike from Adam Lallana saw them beat Norwich 5-4.
Origi 90+6
Late goals are a common feature of this list. They were, after all, a common feature of so many great moments for Klopp’s Liverpool.
They have also been a regular feature of games against Everton down the years but this wasn’t any ordinary late winner. Many aspects of this goal made it one of the most unbelievable moments under the German manager.
The game itself was dire and appeared to be heading for a stalemate. Nothing summed up the match more than Virgil van Dijk’s attempted volley in the closing seconds that seemed destined to be sailing over the crossbar. The faint sounds of ironic cheers of Everton fans could be heard from the Anfield Road end however their cheers would soon be drowned out.
The ball took an age to drop and, as it did, Jordan Pickford in the goal inadvertently prevented it from landing on top of the net by appearing to help it back onto the crossbar. The ball bounced down and out to a grateful Divock Origi who headed into a practically empty net.
Anfield erupted but no one celebrated more than the manager who ran onto the pitch and shared an embrace with goalkeeper Alisson Becker in the middle of the park.
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Alisson Goal v West Brom
Liverpool’s acquisition of Alisson from Roma in 2018 is regarded as one of the most important pieces of transfer business that their manager has ever made. The Brazilian has established himself as arguably the best in the world in his position and he became a vital cog in the team reaching a new level en route to winning the Champions League and Premier League.
No one could have expected the importance he would play during the 2020/21 season though. The campaign was a largely forgettable one. The Reds were top of the league at Christmas but they went on a miserable run in the New Year and found themselves battling for a Champions League place come May.
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Heading for a 1-1 draw at West Brom in game 36 of the season, Klopp’s side knew that a draw would make it very difficult to secure Champions League football in their final two matches. A corner in the 95th minute brought the rare sight of Alisson approaching the opposition box. No West Brom player picked up the Brazilian keeper and as the ball swung his way, he diverted a header as good as any striker will ever score into the far corner.
The goal put them two points off the top four and proved essential in their eventual third-place finish.
Liverpool 7-0 Manchester United
Liverpool have obtained some impressive results against Manchester United under Klopp and it goes to show how many unbelievable moments there have been when the 5-0 win at Old Trafford in 2021 doesn’t feature on this list.
If 5-0 in their own backyard was embarrassing enough for the Red Devils, losing 7-0 at Anfield a year and a half later was total humiliation.
The first half was rather uneventful with the away side arguably having the better moments in the game but a late Cody Gakpo strike saw The Reds take the lead into the interval. No one could have predicted what would happen in the second 45 though as Liverpool ran riot with Gakpo scoring again and Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez both finding the net twice.
The icing on the cake was the seventh. Six is embarrassing but seven always feels like it is on another level, not to mention it was scored by fan favourite Roberto Firmino who had only announced his impending departure from the club earlier in the week.
It was Liverpool’s biggest win against their arch-rivals and one expects that to remain in the history books for a very long time.
Corner Taken Quickly
Perhaps the most unbelievable moment under Klopp was Liverpool’s semi-final victory over Barcelona en route to winning the Champions League in 2019.
The Reds went into the second leg at Anfield in hope more than expectation having lost the first leg in the Nou Camp 3-0. The away team had actually played quite well in Spain and 3-0 flattered the Catalans but even with the power of Anfield, it was a huge ask to turn this around.
The home side struck early in the game through Divock Origi to increase the hope and give Liverpool a 1-0 lead at halftime. Georginio Wijnaldum’s introduction proved pivotal as he scored twice in as many minutes in the second half to level the tie.
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The Reds weren’t done there though and a piece of innovative thinking from Trent Alexander-Arnold will go down in Liverpool folklore for years to come. Following the winning of a corner, the full-back spotted that the Barcelona players had switched off and delivered the ball quickly in the direction of an unmarked Divock Origi. Origi reacted just in time to see the ball coming his way before adjusting his body and sweeping the ball into the top left corner.
The comeback was complete and remains the most dramatic and unbelievable moment in Klopp’s Liverpool reign; for now at least.
