What Klopp took from Dortmund to Liverpool, which BVB need back.
Jurgen Klopp’s dynamic Liverpool side have one foot in the Champion’s League semi-final door, as they ferociously beat Premier League Champions elect Manchester City 3-0.
It was a display that personified the former Borussia Dortmund manager, high press, aggressive, ‘heavy metal football’ as he so famously put it himself.
The match that comes to mind is Borussia Dortmund 4-1 Real Madrid.
Like Dortmund were at the Signal Iduna Park in the 2012-13 season, Liverpool were lightning quick, assertive and ruthless.
Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City side looked shell-shocked and were certainly not as crisp as they normally are-yet again, they may still have been shaking from the battering their team coach got as they drove into Liverpool.
Overall, Liverpool’s performance encapsulated Jurgen Klopp as a manager and it also highlighted what was missing in Borussia Dortmund’s 6-0 defeat to Bayern Munich, last Saturday.
The former Mainz manager possesses a charisma which makes people fall in love with him and makes football players want to throw themselves through brick walls.
His no fear attitude to approaching all football matches whether that is against lower league teams or the best teams in the world, made players feel special and almost always got the best out of them.
For example, Robert Lewandowski was a player who did not start well at Dortmund, but Klopp was patient and instilled a self-belief in the striker which would eventually turn him into one of the most feared strikers in world football today.
BVB looked terrified in the face of the juggernaut that is Bayern Munich and they got what they deserved in last week’s derby.
The term ‘men against boys’ is thrown about a lot nowadays but it definitely would not be out of place in this instance.
A Dortmund team managed by Jurgen Klopp certainly would not have crumbled in the way this team did last week.
When Dortmund got to the Champion’s League Final in the 2012-13 season, the side was fuelled on adrenaline, confidence and a never say die attitude which made them feel unstoppable.
Who can forget the last minute heroics against Malaga in the quarter finals and the determination that was shown against Real Madrid in the second leg of the semi-final, where they had to fight off waves and waves of Madrid attacks?
Peter Stoeger has done an impressive job since taking over from the sacked Peter Bosz just before the winter break.
He has steered them back into Champions League contention for next year, but the 6-0 defeat has underlined exactly what they have missed since Klopp left the Signal Iduna Park.
Whatever Klopp took from Germany and gave to Liverpool, BVB need it back desperately.
