Why Jurgen Klopp needs to win another big trophy with Liverpool

Quadruple alive and kicking

The next two months could be among the greatest in Liverpool’s history. That might sound like an exaggeration considering how much the Reds have achieved down the years. A record of nineteen league titles, six Champions Leagues, three UEFA Cups and 16 domestic cups make the Anfield club one of the most successful in Europe. Yet never before have they won four major trophies in a single season.

The dream of a quadruple is still alive. Liverpool already have one piece of silverware in the bag, having scooped the League Cup courtesy of a penalty shoot-out victory over Chelsea in February. On Wednesday, Jurgen Klopp’s side will face Benfica in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final. In mid-April they face Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-final, just days after what could in effect be a Premier League title decider between the pair at the Etihad Stadium.

Winning a quadruple is a tall order; there is a reason why no team has ever done it before in English football. Liverpool are not the favourites in any of the three competitions they remain in. Our traders rate their chances of Premier League success at 35% and give them a 29% shot at winning the Champions League.

Klopp's legacy

Yet while Liverpool are unlikely to be parading four trophies around Anfield at the end of the campaign, there will be a sense of disappointment if they end up with just the League Cup to show for their efforts. Indeed, Klopp probably needs to win at least another Premier League title or Champions League before he leaves Liverpool to really cement his legacy.

There is no doubt that the German has done a magnificent job at Anfield. When he was appointed in October 2015, Liverpool had gone 25 years without a league title. There had been some triumphs in the intervening years, most notably when Rafael Benitez’s side won the Champions League in 2005, but the Reds were still a long way away from clambering back onto their perch.

It was not a case of instant success under Klopp. Liverpool finished eighth in his first season at the helm. In his first full campaign in charge, the Reds scraped into the Champions League by finishing fourth, just one point ahead of Arsenal.

They also ended the 2017/18 season in fourth, but a run to the Champions League final showed Liverpool’s potential under Klopp. They may have lost 3-1 to Real Madrid in Kyiv, but for the first time Klopp’s side proved they were capable of challenging for the biggest prizes.

Liverpool's Jurgen Klopp could become the first manager in English football history to win the quadruple

Trophy shortage 

Over the last four years it has been a story of virtually consistent excellence. Liverpool went one better in the Champions League in 2019, beating Tottenham Hotspur in the final. The following year they won the Premier League title, amassing 99 points – only two more than they managed in 2018/19, when the Reds were edged out by Manchester City.

Klopp has made Liverpool one of the best teams in Europe again. Yet one Premier League title, one Champions League and one League Cup does not really do justice to how good Liverpool have been under his tutelage.

The chief problem has been Manchester City. It is Klopp’s misfortune that he has had to compete with another of the greatest sides in English football history. In another era this Liverpool team could easily have won several titles on the bounce. City’s own brilliance has prevented that.

Narrowly missing out to a team managed by Pep Guardiola – one of the best coaches of all time – that is essentially bankrolled by the Abu Dhabi royal family should not be a source of shame for Liverpool. At the same time, Klopp needs to secure more silverware as a tangible mark of his fine work on Merseyside.

Pipped by Pep

“I could say City is the toughest opponent I ever had, but I should not forget I faced him already at Bayern [Munich] and I cannot say it was much easier,” Klopp said a few weeks ago.

“We pushed each other on insane levels in the last few years, with the number of points collected. OK, we couldn't cope with it last year for obvious reasons, but in the other years we were around.

“I don't think City would get the amount of points they will get this year if we weren't around, and if they weren't around it's pretty much the same. But a lot of games to play - we will see where we end up.”

Before they turn their attention to Manchester City, Liverpool host Watford in the early kick-off on Saturday. A win there would see the Reds climb to the top of the table for the first time since September. For the sake of his legacy, Klopp will hope they stay there.