Is anyone else nervous about the upcoming final? I think it would be sensible not to underestimate Tottenham in a game where we are marginal favourites. I’m sure Jurgen Klopp and the team will not assume the game is won. Can us fans keep our feet on the ground without getting carried away?
Both sides go into the game seen by some as ‘chokers’. For Liverpool, it relates to their recent history of missing out on Premier League glory in 2013-14 under Brendan Rogers and losing cup finals in 2016 and 2018 with Klopp at the helm. No rational football supporter would describe Liverpool as having ‘choked’ in the league this season.
Klopp has brought this unwelcome habit of losing finals with him from Germany, losing a Champions League final & two domestic cups, but more on his success later.
For Tottenham, the ‘choker’ tag relates to their relative lack of success, especially when compared to their London rivals Arsenal & Chelsea. Not to mention their inability to win the Premier League in 2015-16 when well positioned before Leicester famously lifted the trophy.
Chelsea derailed Tottenham’s title challenge in a bad-tempered and dirty London derby towards the end of that season. How Tottenham would love to beat Arsenal in the race to a first Champions League title.
Further scrutiny of this tag shows it to be harsh on both clubs. However, what is clear is that the stakes are incredibly high for both teams.
I feel that Liverpool have even more to lose having spent big over the last 24 months and with Klopp being three years into his six-year contract and needing to deliver on the undoubted development.
Tottenham, by contrast, didn’t spend anything on players during the last 12 months. A loss for Liverpool and the choker label will be more difficult to shake even if Klopp can demonstrate silverware from his time in the Bundesliga, where he was twice a league winner while also picking up three domestic cups during his stint at Dortmund.
Klopp is further down the line in his managerial career than Pochettino. It does seem a bit perverse to label the Argentinian a failure for not winning any trophies so far with Tottenham. This is a man who is only 10 years into his managerial career and who presumably has another 20 or so more years coaching to offer in the game.
Which brings me to the game itself and how Liverpool should approach it. I’m hoping Liverpool play the Jurgen Klopp ‘heavy metal’ way in the first half and get a couple of goals of ahead.
What I then hope happens is that they choose pragmatism for the second half and shut up shop. Sounds easy right? Especially from the comfort of my armchair. Here’s hoping that the reality will be along similar lines.
