5 Brendan Rodgers signings who have thrived under Jurgen Klopp

When Jurgen Klopp took over as Liverpool manager, he inherited a horribly unbalanced squad that had quality but needed grooming. There were five strikers in the squad, namely, Daniel Sturridge, Roberto Firmino, Christian Benteke, Divock Origi and Danny Ings. However, there was only one natural winger in the squad and that was then 20-year-old Jordon Ibe.

Despite the state of the squad he inherited, Klopp took them to two cup finals in his first season at the club and in the first summer under the German, as many as 16 players were sold or released.

Although Klopp has changed the complexion of the squad massively, several players who were signed by his predecessor continue to play a pivotal role at the club.

Although Philippe Coutinho is no longer at the club, he is a player who saw a significant improvement in performance once Jurgen Klopp took over and the Brazilian's final season and a half at the club was spectacular. The same can be said about Divock Origi who looked lost under Brendan Rodgers. The Belgian managed to hit double figures in his two seasons at the club despite playing second fiddle to Liverpool’s attackers.

However, here we look at the five players who have shown massive signs of improvement under Jurgen Klopp and are currently part of the Liverpool squad preparing to face Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League final.

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#5. Adam Lallana

Klopp has often spoken highly of Adam Lallana

Adam Lallana is one player who divides opinion among Liverpool fans to this day. Many consider him an inconsistent player who is only fit to be a squad player or needs to be disposed of while many others consider him an important player in Jurgen Klopp’s midfield.

Lallana arrived in 2014 after an impressive season with Southampton that saw him named in the PFA Team of the Year.

Expectations were huge when he arrived as he was one of the players Liverpool signed with the Luis Suarez money. However, his debut season was rather unconvincing as Liverpool as a whole faltered.

The 2015/16 season was not very different for Lallana as he was used in different positions due to injuries or lack of options for Liverpool. However, one thing was certain, Klopp rated Lallana highly. The German often spoke highly of the Englishman when there were questions about his quality.

The 2016/17 season was a revelation for Lallana as Klopp moved him to a deeper role as one of his three midfield players. The result was spectacular! Lallana ended the season with 8 goals and 7 assists in 31 Premier League games! His late runs into the box created problems for opposition midfielders while his constant twists and turns drew players out of position and created space for the attackers.

Lallana also set several records for most distance covered in a Premier League game in 2016/17. Sometimes he would break his own record. During a game against West Ham, Lallana ran 13.72km breaking his record of 13.07 km set against Leicester City. At that point in the season, only one other player, James Ward-Prowse, had touched the 13 km mark!

The biggest testament of his tenacity and stamina was when he topped the Premier League distance stats twice over the New Year. Liverpool played Manchester City on December 31 where Lallana ran 12.88 km, two days later on Jan 2nd against Sunderland, he covered an incredible 13.22 km!

Lallana’s technical brilliance, endurance and tactical awareness make him one of Jurgen Klopp’s favourite players.

#4 Joe Gomez

Gomez's versatility makes him an important player for Liverpool

Aged just 21, Joe Gomez can be a future lynchpin for both Liverpool and England.

Gomez was signed by Brendan Rodgers in June 2015 during his last transfer window as Liverpool manager. The youngster arrived from Charlton Athletic during a period of intense unrest among the fans after a disastrous season under Brendan Rodgers in 2014/15.

There were no huge expectations when he arrived, as Liverpool had much bigger concerns at that moment. However, he surprised everyone by starting the first Premier League match of the 2015/16 season at left-back despite being right-footed and a center-back by trade.

Gomez started five Premier League games for Liverpool under Rodgers before an ACL injury kept him out of action for over a year.

So when Jurgen Klopp arrived, Gomez was not in the first team picture. In fact, his only three appearances for Liverpool in 2016/17 were all in the FA Cup.

However, at the start of the 2017/18 season, Liverpool’s failure to sign Virgil van Dijk and a long-term injury to Nathaniel Clyne presented an opportunity for Joe Gomez to stake a claim for either position because of his versatility.

His performance in a 4-0 home win over Arsenal in August was just spectacular. He assisted the first goal and was involved in the build-up of the remaining three goals with his ball recovery and calm, composed passing of the ball from the back.

An England call-up followed and he made his debut as a substitute in a 0-0 draw against Germany but it was his first start for England which came against Brazil that caught the eye. He was awarded the man of the match as England kept World Cup favourites Brazil at bay and Gomez was lauded for his incredible handling of the dangerous Neymar.

Gomez was not included in England’s World Cup squad as he was injured but he can look back at the 2017/18 season with pride as he ended up making 31 appearances for Liverpool in all competitions (28 starts) and also made his debut for England.

#3 Emre Can

Losing Emre Can on a free transfer will be a big blow for Liverpool

Emre Can may have already played his last game for Liverpool as he is still an injury doubt for the Champions League final and is rumoured to be on his way to Juventus once his contract expires.

Can joined Liverpool in 2014 from Bayer Leverkusen and spent a large chunk of his debut season playing out of position as one of the three center-backs. He was even used as a right-back with disastrous results!

When Klopp took over, Can was reverted back to his preferred midfield role and there was a significant change in fortunes for the former Bayern Munich man. He played a crucial role in Liverpool’s run to the final of the Europa League in 2016 where he notably came back from injury ahead of schedule to play the second leg of the semi-final against Villarreal. He later revealed that he trained for 8 hours a day for 3 weeks to get fit for the Villarreal game.

The following season, Can played through several minor injury problems as Liverpool finished in a Champions League place for only the second time since 2008-09. He ended the season with 5 goals in all competitions, which was his highest in a single season at that point.

Can continued to be an important player for Liverpool in 2017/18 despite questions over his future at the club. He scored 6 goals this season, beating his personal best from the previous season.

Losing Can will be a big blow for Liverpool, especially because the club will receive no fee for him and will have to spend a fortune to replace him with another midfielder of similar quality.

#2 James Milner

Milner broke the record for most assists in a single Champions League campaign this season

Milner arrived in 2015 on a free transfer from Manchester City but he played very few games under Rodgers as the manager was sacked early in the season.

But Milner’s attitude on and off the pitch endears him to any manager he works with and as a result, he continues to be an important member of Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp.

Milner ended his debut season with Liverpool racking up 8 goals and 14 assists in all competitions of which only one goal and 2 assists were under Brendan Rodgers.

Klopp was already in awe of Milner’s tactical discipline and versatility and used him in several positions but it was during the 2016/17 season that Milner showed the true extent of his versatility. He played as a left-back ahead of Alberto Moreno and scored 7 goals (all penalties) while assisting 4 more.

He was reverted back to his familiar midfield role this season and has been crucial in Liverpool’s run to the Champions League final. He has 8 assists in this season’s Champions League, which is the most by any player in a single season in Europe’s biggest club competition!

Throughout the season, Milner was in all but one of Liverpool’s matchday squads. This is quite remarkable for a player who turns 33 next season!

#1 Roberto Firmino

Firmino is arguably the most important player of Jurgen Klopp's system

There was never any doubt about who would be number one on this list.

Two of Liverpool’s dangerous front three were signed by Jurgen Klopp but arguably the most important one and if I dare say so - Jurgen Klopp’s personal favourite, Roberto Firmino, was signed by Brendan Rodgers.

Firmino was written off early in his Liverpool career and labeled a flop by the media early in his Liverpool career but the arrival of Jurgen Klopp unleashed his true potential. In fact, he has improved massively as each season passes.

The Brazilian played a variety of roles in 2015/16 scoring 11 goals and assisting 10 across all competitions. However, at the start of the 2016/17 season, Klopp deployed Firmino as a striker in Liverpool’s front three and he started to wreak havoc!

Firmino’s work rate and technical brilliance made him a forward like no other. He often drops deep, draws the center-backs out of positions and creates space between the full-backs and the center-backs for the wingers to exploit.

His importance and effectiveness cannot be summed up by looking at the number of goals or assists he provides. Quite often, he wins the ball back high up the pitch with the opposition caught off guard and this helps Liverpool create a dangerous counter-attacking situation.

He ended the 2016/17 season with 12 goals and 8 assists in all competitions which were not a huge improvement from his numbers in his debut season. However, the arrival of Mohamed Salah saw a huge rise in the numbers of both players.

Salah’s pace and constant forward runs started to yield more results because of the space Firmino creates for him. They also formed an incredible understanding with each other.

Firmino currently has 27 goals and 16 assists to his name in all competitions this season! He has 10 goals in the Champions League (excluding the playoff) which is the most any player has scored for Liverpool in a single Champions League campaign.

To underline how highly Jurgen Klopp rates Roberto Firmino, read this comment made by the German this season:

"Mo Salah, world class, but not every day. Sadio Mane, world class, but not every day. Roberto Firmino, world class, pretty much every day,"