Jurgen Klopp's dazzling Liverpool era: A man of records set to depart Anfield
Jurgen Klopp's time at Liverpool is an era that will be close to the hearts of past, present and future generations of the club's many supporters.
Since the German's arrival from Dortmund in 2015, his time at the helm has been characterised by both high-intensity play and Gegenpress, what Klopp himself once called "heavy metal football", as well as a string of trophies to add to an already impressive trophy cabinet.
His win percentage alone, which at the time of writing stands at 60.7%, is the highest of any Liverpool manager in history with at least 100 games under his belt.
Of course, these aren't the only interesting facts worth focusing in on when reflecting on the almost nine seasons 'Der Jurgen' has been in charge of the Anfield club.
In collaboration with Stats Perform, we take a look at a few of the figures that stand out in a dazzling managerial achievement that has made the German from Stuttgart a folk hero in Liverpool and beyond (except perhaps for some Everton fans).
Three seasons with a win percentage above 70%
In both 2018/19 and 2019/20, Liverpool hit a win rate of over 70%, which is quite impressive. Of course, in the 18/19 season, the crowning glory was the 2-0 Champions League victory over Tottenham, which secured Liverpool their sixth win in the competition. In addition, their 97 points in the league that season, which incredibly wasn't enough to win the championship, was a statistical anomaly of the highest order.
However, it could be argued that the 21/22 season was the most impressive by Klopp and Liverpool.
Not only did the club play every game and reach every final it was possible to reach. They did so with a staggering 73% win rate in 63 games.
They finished runner-up to Klopp's nemesis, Pep Guardiola and Manchester City, by just one point. And the Champions League final was also lost by a single goal to Real Madrid.
But the sheer perseverance shown by the team during a high-intensity, fixture-heavy season deserves great praise.
A points average only surpassed by Pep & Fergie
It's testament to a consistently high standard that you can look at Liverpool's time under Klopp and note that he's averaged 2.12 points per game since October 2015. In his 466 games in charge of the club so far, he has won 283 games, drawn 105 and lost 78.
In the Premier League, the average number of wins has been 62.8%, while in the Champions League it has been 61.5%. His worst average is in the Community Shield, where Liverpool have only won once and lost twice under Klopp's management.
Won almost everything and anything
Klopp can safely say that there is nothing more for him to win for Liverpool. The temperamental German can tick off almost everything that can be won for the club.
He is the only Liverpool manager to have won the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup, EFL Cup, Club World Cup, UEFA Super Cup and Community Shield.
In addition, they've lost two Champions League finals (don't mention Lorius Karius in that context), as well as one Europa League final, where they lost 1-3 to Sevilla in 2015-16. But most Liverpool fans can live with that.
In the grand scheme of things, however, his five major titles still leaves him behind Bob Paisley (13 titles) and Bill Shankly and Kenny Dalglish, who have both won six major titles.
Hated and favourite opponents
Klopp has of course faced a wide range of English clubs, mainly orientated towards the top two tiers. Perhaps surprisingly, it's not Manchester City, but Chelsea who have been the dreaded opponent for Liverpool under Klopp.
In 22 matches, Liverpool have won only 27.3% of games, mainly due to a high number of draws (6-12-4).
Among clubs that Liverpool have faced 10 games or more under Klopp, it's Bournemouth that has been the most enjoyable experience for Reds fans. In the 15 meetings between the two sides, Liverpool have won 12, drawn one and lost two.
That the fixtures against Manchester United haven't necessarily reflected the arch-rivals' crisis over the last several seasons can be seen by the fact that Liverpool only have a win percentage of 36.8% against United (7-8-4).
The faithful followers
Many would argue that Liverpool were at their most watchable when the attacking trio of Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane and Mohammed Salah were at their peak.
The two of them have certainly been faithful companions for Klopp, with Firmino being the most capped player under Klopp with 355 appearances, while Salah, who is still at the club, has so far scored 204 goals for the club under Klopp in 332 appearances.
Of these, 151 have come in the Premier League, while 42 have come in the Champions League. This makes Salah the highest scoring Liverpool player in both competitions (under their current names).
On top of this, Salah has also provided the most assists for Liverpool under Klopp, with 82 goals across all competitions.
In addition to the two, James Milner with 323 appearances and Jordan Henderson with 304 appearances across all competitions are the players who have shaped the Klopp era at Anfield.
The individual honours
On a personal level, Klopp boasts nine Premier League Manager of the Month awards (September 2016, December 2018, March 2019, August 2019, September 2019, November 2019, December 2019, January 2020 and May 2021) and Manager of the Year on two separate occasions (2019/20, 2021/22).
In both 2019 and 2020, he was also named World Manager of the Year at FIFA's "The Best" awards. In addition, he has been honoured as an honorary citizen of Liverpool, the so-called "Freedom of the City" .
He shares this honour with the aforementioned Bob Paisley, Nelson Mandela, Gerry Brown from "Gerry & The Pacemakers", who wrote the Liverpool anthem "You'll Never Walk Alone - and of course The Beatles.
It would be a shame to say that there are some big shoes to fill for the future manager in the seat. At the time of writing, most are tipping the extremely successful former Liverpool midfield general Xabi Alonso to take over.
The Spaniard is well on his way to leading Bayer Leverkusen to a superb title as German champions this season, based on many of the same virtues that Klopp stands for.
