How Klopp drew inspiration from past Liverpool managers to set a new club record

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After beating Manchester United with comparable ease, Liverpool have now officially had their best unbeaten run in the club’s Premier League history.

The Reds have not won a top division title since 1990 and are considered the Premier League’s perennial ‘also-rans’ or ‘nearly men’. They have had some of the top talents in the history of English football during this time with the likes of Steven Gerrard, Fernando Torres and Luis Suarez gracing the Anfield turf but it has never been enough.

Things could be about to change, however, as Jurgen Klopp has guided the Reds to a run of 18 games without defeat, one better than the previous best under Rafa Benitez in 2008 and two better than Brendan Rodgers 16 games unbeaten in 2014.

So what is the secret? Well, looking at the records of Benitez and Rodgers, it is clear Klopp has found the right balance of two succinct styles.

The solid defensive ethos of Rafa and the attacking verve of Rodgers built around a group of players that clearly understand the responsibility of playing for a side like Liverpool.

Let’s delve deeper…

The records examined

Benitez based his Liverpool side on a set up that was hard to break down while using the pace of Torres to break quickly. During the 17 games in which the Reds avoided defeat under the Spaniard, they managed to keep an amazing 10 clean-sheets.

The back line included international stars like Sami Hyypia and Daniel Agger, not to mention Jamie Carragher. This strong unit helped Liverpool move away from the reputation of being defensively frail which had stuck from the Roy Evans era.

Despite this Benitez had to make sacrifices. During the run only 27 goals were scored which compared to both Rodgers and Klopp, 52 and 41 respectively, pales by comparison.

This record also spanned across two seasons for the Spaniard and both ended without a title with Liverpool finishing fourth in 2007/08 and second in 2008/09 but his methods were a massive improvement on what the fans had become accustomed to.

Brendan Rodgers’ free-scoring Reds

The big difference between Rodgers and Benitez was that the Northern Irishman threw caution to the wind. His side smashed home 52 goals in an unbeaten run spanning 16 games but this was to the detriment of his side’s defensive duties.

They conceded 21 goals, faced 200 shots and kept just five clean sheets. The lack of a solid backline saw Liverpool finish the 2013/14 season two points behind eventual champions Manchester City with a 3-3 draw in the penultimate game of the season at Selhurst Park summing up both the good and the bad of the Rodgers system.

To be champions having a formidable defence is a must as it can be hard to maintain such goal scoring feats and Rodgers was unable to keep the momentum going after Suarez left for Barcelona as the Anfield club slipped to a sixth-place finish a season later.

Jurgen Klopp combining the best of both

Klopp may have taken time to win round his detractors but there is no doubt the former Borussia Dortmund boss has found a system that merges the defensive solidity of Benitez with the attacking panache of Rodgers.

It is now 18 games since Liverpool last lost in the top flight with the German’s high press, fast break system paying dividends.

Built around the defensive wall that is Virgil van Dijk and boosted by the energy of both Naby Keita and Fabinho Liverpool have strength in all areas. They made Manchester United look second rate in the 3-1 win at Anfield and have been unplayable at times.

The numbers Klopp has posted prove he has managed to find a balanced system that, compared to last season, is consistently producing the goods.

Just seven goals have been conceded, only 141 shots faced and a clean sheet tally of 11 (one more even than the defensive-minded Benitez) has been recorded.

This is a Liverpool side that has it all. The depth that sees the likes of Jordan Henderson and Xherden Shaqiri sat on the bench for a massive game against rivals Manchester United speaks volumes and the 41 goals netted is less than Rodgers during his record run but it doesn’t require sacrifices at the back.

You have to beat the big boys

Rafa Benitez missed out on a title with Liverpool in 2009 despite only losing twice all season. The season before his side lost twice to Manchester United as the Reds ended the campaign in fourth place.

Brendan Rodgers was unable to beat the top sides as his team lost to Arsenal, Manchester City and twice to Chelsea. Klopp has already beaten both Tottenham and Manchester United while avoiding defeat against Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester City with his key players turning up for the big matches.

Taking points off the sides in and around you is a must at both ends of the table but especially so in a title race and it is a case of so far so good for Jurgen Klopp this season.

If the German can keep the level of consistency shown in the last 18 Premier League games then this could well be a season to remember for Liverpool.

The post How Klopp combined the best of Benitez and Brendan to set a new Liverpool record appeared first on Squawka News.



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