Moving Target – Jurgen Klopp

Following the weekend departure of Brendan Rodgers, Liverpool have moved quickly to appoint Jurgen Klopp as their new manager on a three-year contract. The former Borussia Dortmund boss takes over at Anfield with the Reds lying tenth in the Premier League, six points behind early pacesetters Manchester City.

In this morning’s unveiling, Klopp wasted no time in endearing himself to Liverpool fans and press alike, with numerous soundbites to chew over. The German issued a clear indication of what we can expect from his new team:

“Liverpool has extraordinary supporters and Anfield is a world renowned home, with an incredible atmosphere. I want to build a great relationship with these supporters and give them memories to cherish. I hope we can feed off each other’s energy and that we take this journey together. Winning is important but so is how you win and how you play the game. I believe in a playing philosophy that is very emotional, very fast and very strong. My teams must play at full throttle and take it to the limit every single game. It is important to have a playing philosophy that reflects your own mentality, reflects the club and gives you a clear direction to follow. Tactical of course, but tactical with a big heart.”

THE HISTORY

Having spent his entire playing career at Mainz 05, spanning 12 years, Klopp took charge of Die Nullfünfer in 2001. He guided the club to promotion to the Bundesliga in the 2003/04 season thanks to a third-place finish in the second tier. The first two seasons in the top-flight were relatively successful, with back-to-back 11th place finishes, before Mainz were relegated back to Bundesliga II in 2007.

Klopp decided to stay with the club but, just a year later, was approached by Borussia Dortmund about their vacant managerial role, and duly signed a two-year contract with the 1996/97 Champions League winners. In his first season in charge with Die Schwarzgelben, Klopp guided Dortmund to a sixth-place spot – a major improvement on the previous campaign, where they had finished in 13th place in the Bundesliga.

In the following season, a fifth-place finish was seen as further progress, before Klopp spectacularly landed consecutive league titles in the 2010/11 and 2011/12 campaigns. The 2011/12 season saw Dortmund complete a domestic double for the first time in the club’s history, beating Bayern Munich 5-2 in the final of the DFB-Pokal.

The following year, Dortmund had a spectacular campaign in the Champions League, including a memorable 4-1 triumph in the semi-final first-leg against Real Madrid, which saw them go all the way to the final, only to lose to German rivals Bayern Munich 2-1 at Wembley. The 2013/14 campaign saw Klopp guide Dortmund to a second-place finish, but following the sale of Robert Lewandowski in the summer of 2014, the club flirted with relegation before eventually securing a seventh-place finish in 2014/15. Prior to the end of that campaign, Klopp announced he would be leaving Dortmund to take a self-enforced sabbatical.

THE PREVIOUS REGIME

Given Liverpool lie just three points off the Champions League places, Klopp takes the reins with the club in a reasonable position. The Reds have found scoring goals difficult so far, managing just eight, although the return to fitness of Daniel Sturridge has seen them net five times in the last three matches as a result of Rodgers’ switch to 3-4-1-2.

After keeping clean sheets in their opening three matches of the campaign, Liverpool have conceded 10 goals in the subsequent five matches, a problem which lingered for much of Rodgers’ spell at Anfield.

Even during the 2013/14 campaign, when the Reds finished second in the Premier League, they still let in 50 goals, which was only 12 less than relegated Norwich conceded. Last season it was a similar story, as the Reds’ shipped 48 goals – put into perspective, relegated pair Hull and Burnley conceded 51 and 53 times respectively.

THE REMAINDER OF THE SEASON

With 30 matches still left of the 2015/16 campaign the Liverpool hierarchy will surely be expecting Klopp to challenge for a place in the top four. Given the club’s significant investment over the summer, it remains to be seen just how much cash the new manager will be afforded over the winter transfer window as he looks to make his own stamp on the Merseysiders’ first XI.

There’s no doubt that the club’s transfer committee and Moneyball approach hindered Rodgers’ recruitment drive, though the new man in charge confirmed he has no issues with the system:

“This is a really crazy discussion because it was not a problem for (even) 10 seconds. It’s enough for me to have the first and last word. We only want to discuss about very good players and discussing on the highest level and I hope that’s what we do. I’m not a genius, I don’t know more than the rest of the world. I need the other people to get perfect information. It’s really easy to handle it.”

In terms of playing style, it may well be the total antithesis of what we saw under Rodgers in recent times. The German’s teams are known for a style of play called gegenpressing, which relies on the team to play at full pace from start to finish, swarming the opposition once losing possession, giving them no time on the ball, and counter-attacking directly and with pace when the opponent is open and exposed.

While this was a facet of the Liverpool side which contained Luis Suarez, since the Uruguayan’s departure the likes of Mario Balotelli, Rickie Lambert and, more recently, Christian Benteke have lacked the energy and mobility to press high up the pitch. Rodgers’ gameplan was also based on possession, something which Klopp seems to hold in less regard, as he’s already stated in the past when discussing Barcelona’s tiki-taka style of play:

“It is not my sport. I don’t like winning with 80% [possession]. Sorry that is not enough for me. Fighting football, not serenity football, that is what I like. What we call in German ‘English’ — rainy day, heavy pitch, 5-5, everybody is dirty in the face and goes home and cannot play for weeks after.”

Tactically, the German favours a narrow 4-2-3-1 formation, with a high defensive line helping the pressing style of play further up the field. This sees the full-backs pushing forward in order to afford width, whilst the rest of the team stay close to one another, hunting down in packs. This could boost the prospects of Nathaniel Clyne and, in particular, Alberto Moreno, should the new man in charge keep faith in the Spaniard. Priced at 4.7 in FPL, Moreno has produced more key passes (13) than any defender since being reinstalled to the first XI in Gameweek 6, though he was, of course, utilised as a wing-back over that period.

In the centre of the park, Jordan Henderson and James Milner look well suited to Klopp’s philosophy. Both players having the stamina to continually press the opposition, though Klopp does tend to prefer one ball-winner in the double-pivot and with Henderson currently injured, the likes of Lucas, Emre Can and Joe Allen are likely to battle it out for a place alongside Milner for now.

One problem Klopp will encounter at Anfield is the paucity of wingers currently on the books. Jordon Ibe is the only natural wide man at the club, and that lack of pace in the wide areas will likely be addressed in the next few transfer windows. Forgotten man Roberto Firmino – once he recovers from a back injury – could finally be afforded a chance to nail down a regular role in the attacking midfield three slots. As discussed in our summer Scout Report, the Brazilian created more chances (138) than any player in the Bundesliga in his final two years at Hoffenheim and will clearly be well-known to Klopp. Philippe Coutinho, meanwhile, is expected to continue in the role in “the hole” which saw him fire 20 attempts on goal in the last three Gameweeks, whilst the likes of Adam Lallana will also be hoping to nail down a starting berth in the three slots behind a lone striker. Both Henderson and Milner are also versatile enough to be fielded on the right, depending on how Klopp sets up the double-pivot.

Up front, Klopp’s preference for a 4-2-3-1 may already spell trouble for Christian Benteke. Providing he remains fit and free of injury, Daniel Sturridge’s prolific record in the Premier League would suggest he stands the best chance of leading the line, though Ings’ recent form (two strikes in his last three league outings) suggests he can’t be ruled out. Like Henderson and Milner, Ings is versatile enough to be fielded on the flank, though, and certainly has the work-rate to impress his new manager from a wide area, which is perhaps his best chance of nailing down a regular role.

Turning to the schedule, Liverpool’s fixtures over the upcoming weeks will certainly prove a good test for Klopp’s credentials. Given that the Reds’ next six fixtures (tot, SOT, che, CPL, mci, SWA) are all against sides who finished in the top ten last season, the first few matches of Klopp’s reign look the ideal opportunity for Fantasy managers to sit back and assess his preferred personnel before the schedule takes a turn for the better around Gameweek 14.