Jurgen Klopp's makeover at Liverpool: How much more can he take?

Jurgen Klopp has a lot of work to do to restore Liverpool to their former glory. Photo: Getty Images/Marc Atkins

Not for long. Previously, it seemed impossible that Jurgen Klopp would ever voluntarily leave Liverpool. While this is still an unlikely prospect, this forecast may need to be downgraded to «incredible». after many other nights like this. God, it was a tedious job.

There was a pre-match show with spotlights flashing to the beat of 2 Blur, several fire-breathing cars on the pitch, and then the arrival of hundreds of millions of pounds of football talent. What they served was a premium slop night. The logos and melody said it was the Premier League, but the game was like the Australian A-League at 1.5 times the speed.

Still, Liverpool got what they came for, — rest for some jaded stars and a clean slate. A back four of Joe Gomez, Joel Matip, Ibrahima Konate and Kostas Tsimikas was not anyone's first pick idea. Once settled, he was at least more solid than he was against Manchester City. There are fewer gaping gaps behind your cornerback when he moves forward less readily than Trent Alexander-Arnold.

But there were so many unforced errors, inappropriate passes and concessions in possession that it didn't seem like much of a blip. Klopp seemed more monotonous than usual when assessing the game: «It was not the most spectacular 0-0 score I have ever seen,» he said.

He spoke carefully, as if at the foot of a hill I could have sworn I had already climbed it. “Every development, every success begins with the fact that it is difficult to surpass. We will be hard to beat again.”

Is there still a chance to get into the top four? «I don't know. For that we have to win almost every game and the other teams above us have to lose a lot of games, it's out of our hands so I can't say. But it doesn't matter. If we're not fourth, I want to be fifth «If we're not fifth, I want to be sixth. For that we have to win football matches. At the moment I don't even know where we are, eighth? Seventh? Ninth? I don't know, it's not interesting.»

He was right the first time, Liverpool are eighth, two places higher than they were when Klopp replaced Brendan Rodgers in 2015. Promising, capable of more, but unstable. In these lean times, Jordan Henderson remains an echo of this team's glorious recent past. He desperately needs his younger and more gifted colleagues to fill in the gaps in his hard work and standard setting. He has repeatedly lost his rag with his teammates and the sight of him fighting Alisson would have been unthinkable for much of the Klopp era when unity was never questioned.

Becker and Henderson clashed after the final whistle. Photo: Ryan Pearce/GETTY

It's only been a month since their 7-0 victory over Manchester United, but even at night it seemed like a mirage. Their performance at Chelsea was a better reflection of what Liverpool had to offer for much of the season, especially away from home. Klopp's team has a few issues that Jude Bellingham could help solve, but despite being gifted, he's no magician.

Does Klopp want to climb that hill again? Could you? Upper management is a grueling conveyor belt of existence, Yo! Sushi from repetitive tasks: alarm clock at 5am, gym at 5:10am, protein shake at 6am, some workout, deal for sponsors, deal with the media, hand in hand with Caoimhin Kelleher, figure out angles next week, fall asleep again before the Whiskout .

With ten games left this season, Klopp will be on hiatus. If he stays, and there's no reason to believe he won't, he'll spend his eighth season as Liverpool manager and finally calm the theorists of the seven-year itch. They highlighted his turning points at both Borussia Dortmund and Mainz in many of the moments this season where things went awry. It would have been a shock to anyone else to be in the Anfield dugout at the start of the 2023/24 season.

However, at Stamford Bridge, you wondered at times how much more he could take. In the first half, after the last mistake of his team, he jumped up on his tiptoes, raised both hands and screamed in desperation at the sky.

He seemed more reserved in the second half, which is wise for a team in disarray. His old wild growl can do as much harm as good to a team that misuses so many passes. But there may be another reading. What does silent quitting look like?