The pride radiated from Jurgen Klopp as he sat down for his post-match press conference following Liverpool’s Carabao Cup success last Sunday.
“What we see here today is so exceptional, we might never see again — and not because I am on the sideline, because these things don’t happen in football,” said Klopp. “There are longer careers than mine but in more than 20 years… easily the most special trophy I ever won.”
Klopp has now won eight trophies at Liverpool (13 in his career) but how do they rank in importance? This is our verdict, not including the 2022 Community Shield. Feel free to disagree in the comments below.
7. UEFA Super Cup, 2019: Chelsea 2-2 Liverpool (4-5 pens)
“ADRIAN!”
Klopp was conducting a post-match TV interview following his side’s penalty shootout victory against — you guessed it — Chelsea when he bellowed the name of his goalkeeper, in a nod to Rocky Balboa.
In truth, the then-32-year-old goalkeeper’s heroics were just as unlikely as Rocky’s. Adrian had signed for Liverpool only weeks earlier as a free agent backup to Alisson, but it was his penalty save from Tammy Abraham that won the shootout and, as he was mobbed by his team-mates, Klopp was not far behind, sprinting over, fists pumping in delight.
It is easy to categorise the European Super Cup as merely a glossy version of the Community Shield, with entry earned by winning one of Europe’s top two competitions, but it mattered to Liverpool. And the manner in which it was won reflected another theme of Klopp’s era — the trust that he has in every squad member.
Missing Alisson and replacing him with a goalkeeper who had barely got his feet under the table was the perfect excuse if they hadn’t won. Instead, the Klopp effect had already rubbed off on Adrian as he became the match winner and earned his place in the club’s folklore.
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6. FA Cup, 2022: Chelsea 0-0 Liverpool (5-6 pens)
The second trophy of Liverpool’s domestic double in 2022 meant that Klopp and the majority of his side had won almost everything.
It was another tightly contested final against Chelsea but this time, it was Alisson and Kostas Tsimikas who emerged as the heroes.
Any hopes of securing a smooth victory were in trouble when Mohamed Salah limped off after 33 minutes. Liverpool were also without Fabinho but they still dominated in normal time. A breakthrough was not forthcoming and they tired in extra time, failing to register a shot.
When the penalty shootout arrived, there was plenty of analysis afterwards of the differences of approach and body language from each side. Liverpool looked more cohesive than their opponents — it is a theme of Klopp’s reign, a side prepared to handle everything thrown at them and believe they will come out on top. They did, again, to claim Liverpool’s first FA Cup since 2006.
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5. Carabao Cup, 2022: Liverpool 0-0 Chelsea (11-10 pens)
There is little to split between the two domestic cup successes in 2022: both involved trips to Wembley to face Chelsea, no goals, a shootout, and Liverpool lifting the cup.
Similarly to this season, Liverpool were on the hunt for a possible quadruple, so getting the first trophy in the bag was an important first step.
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It was also Klopp’s first domestic cup victory as Liverpool manager and his first win at Wembley, having lost two Community Shield finals to Manchester City and Arsenal on penalties.
Due to the unwritten rule that Liverpool finals must contain an element of adversity, Klopp had to shuffle his pack when Thiago picked up an injury in the warm-up and Naby Keita took his place.
The true drama came in the penalty shootout after a goalless 120 minutes. Every Liverpool player scored, including goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher, before his Chelsea’s Kepa Arrizabalaga blazed over the bar to seal an 11-10 victory.
Crucially, it provided Liverpool with increased momentum and belief that they could win all four trophies. They fell just short — reaching two more finals and coming within 10 minutes of the Premier League title — but this was the tantalising afternoon when everything remained possible.
4. Club World Cup, 2019: Flamengo 0-1 Liverpool
Few teams can label themselves champions of the world but for one year, Liverpool were exactly that after lifting the trophy in Qatar.
It was Klopp’s little piece of history as it was a competition Liverpool had never won: they had twice lost in the final in the 1980s (when the tournament was known as the Intercontinental Cup) and again in 2006. This time, however, Mexican side Monterrey were defeated in the semi-finals and Brazil’s Flamengo in the final after extra time. It was Roberto Firmino’s tournament as he netted the winner in both games.
It was another final that was far from a classic, a common theme under Klopp, but with the stakes at their highest, Firmino arrived to deftly tap in Trent Alexander-Arnold’s low near-post cross.
The European champions became world champions and, for a while at least, Liverpool could call themselves the best football team on the planet.
3. Carabao Cup, 2024: Liverpool 1-0 Chelsea
The latest, and most improbable, trophy success for Klopp and his coaching staff was the perfect reflection of what they have built over the past eight years.
Imagine back in August if somebody had told you Liverpool would finish a Carabao Cup final with a team including academy prospects Jarell Quansah, James McConnell, Bobby Clark and Jayden Danns — as well as Conor Bradley starting — because 12 first-team players were injured. Unthinkable.
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Sunday’s game ebbed and flowed and both sides could have won it, but Virgil van Dijk made the decisive intervention with an 118th-minute header.
Klopp has started the rebuild of what he hopes will be Liverpool’s next great team. They already have their first trophy in the bag and the academy is, arguably, in the best place it has ever been with so many youngsters coming through with first-team potential.
The spine-tingling rendition of ‘Allez, Allez, Allez’ during extra time embodied the unity that has been built between the players and fans, too.
2. Champions League, 2019: Liverpool 2-0 Tottenham
It’s the trophy that grants you a pass into the pantheon of Liverpool’s greatest managers. Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan and Rafael Benitez all led the club to European Cup glory, Bill Shankly and Gerrard Houllier brought European success too — and, in 2019, Klopp added his name to the list.
It was triumph framed by the agony of what had happened 12 months before. The 3-1 defeat to Real Madrid in Kyiv in 2018 was heartbreaking but it felt like Liverpool were back at the top of European football and they confirmed that the following season.
It was also made possible by arguably the finest night in Klopp’s tenure — the 4-0 semi-final second-leg win over Barcelona that overturned a three-goal deficit from the first game in Catalonia and demonstrated the incredible spirit Klopp has fostered.
The 2-0 victory over Tottenham in the Madrid final was a game few enjoyed as a spectacle, not least because Liverpool taking the lead with barely two minutes played killed the game as a contest, but nobody in red cared.
It was a significant moment for Klopp and his players. They shook off the beaten finalists tag, having lost their first three major finals under the German, and finally became winners.
1. Premier League, 2019-20
It was going to take somebody special to steer Liverpool to a top-flight title. The man to end the 30-year wait was Klopp.
Racking up 97 points across the previous season and still finishing second to Manchester City could have demoralised the manager and his players. Instead, the mindset was the opposite: it was time to strive for perfection.
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They almost did it, too. Liverpool won 26 of their opening 27 games, something no team in Europe’s top five leagues had done before.
This was the juggernaut that Klopp had been building towards since his arrival in 2015 — squad packed with talent and a mentality that meant they never knew when they were beaten. Nobody could cope with them.
Aston Villa away. Leicester City, home and away. Manchester City at home. Monumental moments and performances. When Manchester United were beaten 2-0 at Anfield in January, everybody believed the league was Liverpool’s.
There would probably have been more records broken but Covid-19 interrupted the campaign and it meant they lifted the trophy in front of an empty Anfield. It took something away from the moment but not the achievement, which remains Klopp’s greatest.
(Top photos: Getty Images)
