Reliving Jurgen Klopp’s Best Moments as Liverpool Boss as He Closes in On Milestone 450th Game

Eight years and 31 days. Some 450 games. Seven trophies.

Here’s hoping that there’s many more halcyon days to come with Jurgen Klopp in charge at Liverpool FC, but it’s always worth celebrating the past – especially when milestones have been enjoyed with regularity of late.

The German celebrated his eighth birthday as Liverpool boss in the autumn, while the Europa League tie with Toulouse in France marked his 450th game in charge.

The hope is that he will easily surpass 500 games and then some, given that his extended contract should take him through to 2026, with no ceiling on his potential achievements if he is supported financially in the transfer market.

While this list will hopefully be added to multiple times in the future, for now here’s a look back at some of Klopp’s finest achievements as Liverpool manager.

Winning the Premier League

Every football fan has their own opinion on which is best to win: a domestic title or the Champions League?

Some will argue that the club’s big European nights have been the pinnacle, but for long-standing fans of Liverpool the 30-year wait to be crowned champions of England felt like a lifetime.

So it was a crying shame that Anfield didn’t get to erupt at the Premier League trophy presentation – this was in the midst of a global health emergency, you’ll recall, and Klopp will surely be desperate to enjoy a full celebration by winning the title again; this time in front of a symphony of 60,000 fans at an Anfield with its increased capacity in tow.

It wasn’t just winning the title that was so special, but the manner in which the Reds steamrollered the rest to be crowned the best team in the land. They won 33 of their 38 games, averaged more than two goals scored per game and claimed 99 points – only Manchester City’s 100-point haul of 2017/18 can better it.

The fact that a number of players signed by Klopp, including Alisson, Virgil van Dijk, Sadio Mane, Mo Salah and more, were integral figures in the victory only serves to make the moment all the sweeter for the German.

Winning the Champions League

No matter where you stand on the Premier League vs Champions League debate, there’s no doubt that winning the continent’s biggest prize is still a remarkable achievement.

Liverpool have done that six times, of course, but there was something particularly sweet about the 2018/19 triumph – it felt that the Reds had confirmed their status as one of the best teams in the world, rather than ghosting to the trophy via good fortune and a lucky draw.

Not a bad of it. They qualified from a group that contained PSG, Napoli and the potential banana skin of Red Star Belgrade, beat Bayern Munich, Porto and Barcelona in the knockout phase and then overcame Spurs in the all-English final to spark joyous scenes in the red end of the Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid.

Magic Moments: The Barcelona Comeback

It’s true that being present at a league or cup final win is the pinnacle for a football fan.

But there’s still something truly magical about witnessing the unbridled joy that only football can create with its moments of incredible skill, unforgettable goals or games that are higher in drama and tension than the average Hollywood blockbuster.

Nobody present at Anfield for Liverpool’s 4-0 win over Barcelona during that 2018/19 Champions League run will ever forget the game – for good reasons or bad, if you’re from Catalonia.

Barca, you may recall, trounced the Reds 3-0 at Camp Nou in the first leg, and that seemingly was that as far as meaningful contests go.

Divock Origi’s early goal in the return fixture stoked a flame – rather than a full-on fire – of hope, but that seemed to be extinguished when the score remained 1-0, and 1-3 on aggregate, heading into the second half.

What followed was arguably the most unforgettable 45 minutes of football in Liverpool’s history. Gini Wijnaldum popped up with two goals in as minutes to draw the tie level, before Origi’s late second handed the Reds the most unlikely of leads.

They clung on amid desperate attacks from the Spaniards to set up that final with Tottenham….the rest, as they say, is history.

Winning the FA Cup

Liverpool have an outstanding record in the FA Cup; only Arsenal and Manchester United have got their hands on the famous trophy more times.

But it had been a decade since the Reds and their supporters got to enjoy a day out at Wembley Stadium for the final – and that didn’t end well either, given the 1-2 defeat to Chelsea.

Liverpool hadn’t won the FA Cup since 2006, so when they reached the final in 2022 – against Chelsea, ironically – it seemed as good a time as any to bring that hoodoo to an end.

And they did exactly that. The game itself was largely forgettable, with the 90 minutes turning into extra time and then penalties without the scoresheet being troubled.

The TV cameras picked out Liverpool and Chelsea fans biting their nails down to the quick, but the Reds fans need not have worried as misses from Cesar Azpilicueta and Mason Mount allowed Kostas Tsimikas to bundle home the winner and set forth rapturous scenes that even Klopp and his coaching staff could not resist getting involved in.