This Liverpool trio have all had their struggles but have raised their game under the German.
Saturday marks the one-year anniversary of Jurgen Klopp’s arrival at Liverpool. When the affable German took over, the Reds were in a long malaise under then-manager Brendan Rodgers, seemingly still not truly recovered mentally from their collapse at the end of the 2014-15 season when it looked like their long wait for a title would end.
Klopp brought a renowned sense of energy to the club that was distinctly lacking such a trait. Although results were still frustratingly inconsistent, Klopp managed to give Anfield its voice back by engaging with the crowd and speaking honestly before and after matches.
There have been some memorable moments, most notably the club’s run to the Europa League final, and wins against Man City (home and away), Chelsea (twice at Stamford Bridge), and now Arsenal (at the Emirates Stadium) to start this season.
His current winning record at Liverpool currently hovers around the 50% mark after just over 60 games in charge, which is very close to his career managerial average.
He has also managed to improve the output of a number of players which three of them are highlighted below.
Adam Lallana
Early in his Liverpool career Lallana struggled to deal with the expectation that comes with a big-money move after signing from Southampton for £25 million. Rodgers did not help his cause by not keeping him in one set position and questions were beginning to be raised whether the Reds would ever see the best from the attacking midfielder.
It has been a work in progress under Klopp, but this season has seen the planning pay off as the 28 year-old has forged a great working relationship with the likes of Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane and Phillippe Coutinho. The quartet are very technical players and suit Klopp’s gameplan perfectly.
Lallana has made his best start to a season since his arrival at Liverpool scoring three league goals to go along with three assists.
Dejan Lovren
Lovren joined Lallana at Anfield as part of Liverpool’s raid on Southampton in 2014. His Reds career virtually mirrors the English midfielder as he really struggled to adapt to the pressure of being at one of the top clubs in the country. There would not have been many Liverpool fans disappointed to see the Croatian sold at the end of his nightmare first season.
His struggles continued into his second season and when Klopp took over the Anfield hot seat, there was hopes that German would replace him in the side. However, he saw something in Lovren that he could work with and kept the faith with the 27 year-old.
Klopp has been rewarded by a number of impressive performances by Lovren, who is now a first-choice centre-back when fit. Although a mistake may be seen from time to time, they are a lot fewer than before.
Philippe Coutinho
Klopp has turned the Brazilian from a luxury player who would have a good performance every fourth game, to one who you can depend on to play a major role in any Liverpool fixture. The 24 year-old has scored 15 of his 24 goals for the club under the German, making him a more all-round player than a purely a playmaker that he was previously.
The Brazilian has also developed a far greater work ethic and is more than willing to track back and help the defence, another aspect that would please Klopp as this is one of his imperatives that he wants from his players.
With Liverpool making a very impressive start, these three players along the rest of the squad will be aiming to keep it up for a whole season, something they have struggled to do for a long period of time.
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