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Not many successful managers are credited with turning talented players into world class ones because success is not often associated with patience in modern day football.
Pep Guardiola is an exception to this rule as he has continued to find success wherever he goes while developing players massively. His counterpart at Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp is another manager renowned for nurturing players.
Klopp oversaw the progress of some modern-day superstars like Robert Lewandowski, Mats Hummels, Ilkay Gundogan and many others during his time with Borussia Dortmund and he has continued that trend at Liverpool.
When the charismatic German took over as Liverpool manager, he inherited a squad with vast potential but was far from a finished product. Slowly and steadily, he has helped many players realize their potential. So here is a look at the five players who have improved the most under Jurgen Klopp.
Honourable mentions: Alberto Moreno, Adam Lallana, and Sadio Mane
#5 Trent Alexander-Arnold
Klopp isn’t a manager who shies away from giving youngsters the chance to sign and he has put in a lot of faith in the now 19-year-old Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Trent made his debut for Liverpool in a League Cup game last year against Spurs before making his Premier League debut as a starter against Manchester United at Old Trafford during which he managed to keep the dangerous Anthony Martial at bay.
He started the current season as Liverpool’s first choice right-back following an injury to Nathaniel Clyne but Jurgen Klopp later chose to rotate him with Joe Gomez in order to bring more stability to the backline.
Nevertheless, he has started 12 games for the club in all competitions, scoring four goals and assisting one.
Alexander-Arnold is an attacking full-back with a brilliant free-kick technique and once he improves the defensive side of his game, he will surely be starting more games for Liverpool in the future.
Being a lad from Liverpool, the crowd already loves him and Klopp rates him highly too.
#4 Joe Gomez
It would be criminal to underestimate the importance of Joe Gomez to this Liverpool side.
Gomez started his Liverpool career brightly back in 2015 before a ligament injury forced him to sit out for over a year. Last season, after his return from injury, he didn’t get a look in as Klopp felt he needed more time to get back to his best. The patience seems to have worked.
Gomez is now a first choice player for the Reds although he doesn’t offer the same attacking strength Alexander-Arnold offers. But his height, pace, and defensive abilities have helped Liverpool paper the cracks of their fragile defence in recent months.
It is believed that the Englishman will partner Virgil Van Dijk in the heart of the defence in the near future as his best position is as a centre-back.
He also made his first start for England recently against Brazil and was adjudged the man of the match.
Although he hasn’t scored a professional goal yet, his athleticism, composure on the ball and reading of the game is marvelous. He has all the right ingredients to be a top player under Jurgen Klopp.
#3 Philippe Coutinho
Many will argue that Philippe Coutinho was a top player even before Klopp arrived but the little Brazilian has become truly world class under the German.
He had never hit double figures for goals in a season before Klopp arrived but ended with 12 goals at the end of the 2015/16 season which was also Klopp’s first season in charge.
The next season, Coutinho scored 14 goals in 36 games while he took 43 games to score 12 the season before. This time around, the little magician has scored 12 goals already in just 19 games and also has 8 assists to his name.
Coutinho has found incredible consistency under Klopp and runs the show even when he doesn’t score or assist. His vision and dribbling skills have helped players like Mo Salah and Sadio Mane find space to run into so that he can pick them out.
It remains to be seen how much longer he will remain a Liverpool player but he really has Klopp to thank for taking his game to the next level.
#2 Mohamed Salah
Liverpool knew they were getting a terrific player when they signed Mohamed Salah, but he has exceeded all expectations so far.
He has already scored 23 goals in all competitions this season for Liverpool and his personal tally is more than the number of goals scored by eight Premier League clubs this season!
This is already Salah’s best season in terms of goal returns, overtaking the 19 goals he scored for Roma last season.
The Egyptian’s pace, movement, dribbling, and runs are all terrific and Liverpool have played to his strength knowing he will deliver. It has only been half a season at Liverpool for Salah, but he is already showing signs that he could be Klopp’s greatest signing ever.
To put things into perspective, Eden Hazard has never scored more than 19 goals in a season for Chelsea and Mohamed Salah already has 23 from 29 games! That is Messi or Ronaldo level!
#1 Roberto Firmino
Without a hint of doubt, Firmino is the jewel in Klopp's crown at Liverpool.
His importance to the team is often overlooked because of the performance of Coutinho, Salah or Mane but if Firmino ticks, the whole team ticks.
The Brazilian is a menace for the defenders as he moves around the pitch, dragging players out of position by dropping deep to receive the ball. This often creates space for the likes of Salah or Mane to run into and wreak havoc.
No player in the current Liverpool side has been involved in more goals than FIrmino since Klopp took over as manager. Nevertheless, he is often criticised for not scoring enough despite playing as the striker up front but that argument should be put to rest for now.
Firmino has scored 16 goals and provided 8 assists this season in all competitions which is more than the direct goal contribution of the likes of Romelu Lukaku, Sergio Aguero, Alvaro Morata or Alexandre Lacazette.
His tenacity often helps Liverpool win the ball high up the pitch and create a goal scoring chance out of nothing.
