Can Jurgen Klopp make Liverpool the Dortmund of England?
No one would debate that Jurgen Klopp can work managerial magic. His track record at Borussia Dortmund proves it.
The question is if he can work that magic at Liverpool.
It’s been 26 years since Liverpool last won the league, and without a tremendous amount of magic — Dortmund times two, perhaps — that streak is going to reach 27 years in May.
But that won’t make 2016-17 a disappointment. This season is meant to determine if that drought will reach 30 years.
Klopp was brought to Liverpool to revamp the storied club and its culture. He put the fans in line upon his arrival at Anfield; this summer, he put the front office in line too; and the preseason seems to have put the players in line with the style Klopp wants to play — an uber-aggressive, relentless "gegenpress" with four forwards.
If that system is truly installed and the Liverpool players – thanks to three-a-day training sessions this summer — have the stamina to execute it over the course of the season, the Reds will be a force to be reckoned with in 2016-17 and beyond. But in the richest football league in the world, where new club record transfers are being completed seemingly every day, does a no-brakes, just-gas Liverpool have the talent to compete with the best clubs?
At Dortmund, Klopp never had to compete amid an arms race in Manchester — there was only one Bayern Munich. This summer was Klopp’s big-spending transfer window — the first offseason after being appointed manager always is — and the £68 million spent was less than half that spent by both United and City. Chelsea, Arsenal, and even West Ham and Leicester aren’t far behind in spending, though all four teams had relatively quiet summers on the transfer market.
Klopp isn’t going to be starved, but he is playing at a disadvantage compared to his peers. Then again, he's always had to do more with less — his ability to spot bargains on the transfer market is the gold standard in the game and made him a favorite of club ownership — and seems to enjoy the challenge.
"This is my squad now," Klopp said in the preseason. "After all the transfers…this time, it is my team… There are probably no players here anymore I don't want. There are no signings I didn't want, we have not sold anyone I didn't want to."
Whether it was financial handcuffs, the inability to recruit top-level talent to the club, or a firm belief from Klopp that he only needed to patch an already strong roster — Liverpool will enter the 2016-17 campaign with the hope that effort can beat out amalgamations of prodigious, but mismatched talent.
There are viable reasons to doubt it will work: The Liverpool squad isn't nearly as deep as the other top teams in the league, and Klopp won't have a winter break in the EPL, like he did in the Bundesliga, meaning he'll have to consider pacing his players to last the entire campaign, despite the fact Liverpool won't participate in a European tournament this season.
Early league results will go a long way to turning Liverpool's hope into a belief, and if that comes to pass, the sky is the limit for Klopp’s team going forward.
Liverpool will likely play in a 4-2-3-1 formation this season, and the 3 of that system is fearsome. Philippe Coutinho, Roberto Firmino, and £35 million signing Sadio Mane have the speed, technical skill, and creativity to make Liverpool one of the highest-scoring teams in the Premier League. Adam Lallana has shown a penchant for the gegenpress this preseason and could be poised to make good on his £25 million value.
If first-choice striker Daniel Sturridge can remain healthy enough throughout the year to stay on the team sheet — that’s a big ask — Liverpool could well lead the league in scoring.
Klopp will have a hard time determining who will be in the two pivot roles this year. Team captain Jordan Henderson and German starlet Emre Can are the incumbent starters, but Klopp signed Dutch international Georginio Wijnaldum for a reported £23 million deal this summer and added his first signing as Liverpool manager, 20-year-old Serbian Marko Grujić, to the club’s roster.
The success of the Liverpool midfield rides on Can’s ability to become one of the most influential players in the Premier League in 2016-17. Klopp wants “umschaltspiel” — a German term that has no direct English translation but loosely means “ability to transition from offense to defense and vice versa” — from his squad and that obviously hinges on midfield play.
The concern for Liverpool is the defense. Klopp spent only £4.25 million on backline reinforcements, and while there was value to be found, it didn't solidify the unit. Joel Matip, a free transfer from Schalke, is expected to start next to the up-and-down Dejan Lovren at center back, with Ragnar Klavan coming off the bench as the first-choice backup for the pair. It’s unclear where former first-choice center back Mamadou Sakho, who cleared of a doping charge this summer, will fit into the team this season. One injury or bout of poor form could turn the Liverpool backline into a siev.
England international Nathaniel Clyne is Klopp’s first-choice right back, but left back is an area of serious concern for Klopp. Alberto Moreno’s horrid finish to last campaign should have lost him his starting job, but he's still set to be part of the starting XI. Milner is set to slide in as a makeshift option that might become permanent if he can prove steady on the flank.
Klopp brought in Loris Karius to take over as the No. 1 between the posts this season, but after the young German broke his hand in preseason, Simon Mignolet will start the season as Liverpool’s No. 1. Should something happen to the Belgian, who wore out his welcome with Liverpool fans last year, 39-year-old Alex Manninger, who last played for Augsburg in the Bundesliga, is the top backup.
Finding some sort of positive consistency on the defensive side is priority No. 1 for Liverpool — without it, Klopp's desired umschaltspiel in unachievable. Find it, and Liverpool has a chance to make serious waves this year and in years to come.
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