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When Liverpool hired Jurgen Klopp as their manager back in October 2015, they were nowhere near a team capable of challenging for the EPL title. Liverpool had staggered massively after the sale of Luis Suarez, and Brendan Rodgers looked out of ideas during his last few months as the Anfield gaffer.
This Liverpool side is not a copy-paste version of Klopp's Borussia Dortmund side, but retains fundamentals based around principles like gegenpressing and counter-attacking. Klopp has evolved his Liverpool side to be a better all-round team than back in his Dortmund days as this team excels in almost every single area of the pitch.
In this article, we have listed five major tactical innovations introduced by Jurgen Klopp that has ended Liverpool's three-decade wait for the English top-flight title:
5 tactical innovations by Jurgen Klopp that led to Liverpool winning their first EPL title:
#1: Developing Sadio Mane and Mo Salah into world-class players
Liverpool's front three has been the scourge of every Premier League defence for the last two years. But it should not be forgotten that none of the front three were truly prolific before playing under Jurgen Klopp's tutelage.
Phillipe Coutinho, Liverpool's star at the time, didn't suit Klopp's 4-3-3 as he was not quite a left-winger and was not a central midfielder as well. Liverpool's move for Mohamed Salah meant that Mane was moved onto the left flank, which increased his scoring potency as well as creativity as he was able to cut in on his right foot.
Sadio Mane and Mo Salah became Liverpool's main weapons in attack; both of them were dangerous without being truly prolific at their previous clubs.
Salah's best goal return till then in a season was 15 goals for AS Roma. He scored 32 in his first season at Merseyside. Mane also upped his goal-scoring return after joining Liverpool, scoring 22 goals last season to win the Golden Boot jointly with Pierre Emerick Aubameyang and Salah. It was double the Senegalese's best return while he was at Southampton.
The pace injected into the team by Salah and Mane also led to Liverpool being more dynamic in attack while also becoming more proficient and decisive during counter-attacks.
#2: Roberto Firmino as a false nine
“What a player! What can I say? If he loses the ball, he fights for it back. If he loses it again, he fights for it again. He looks like the engine of the team.”- Jurgen Klopp on Roberto Firmino back in 2017
It's hard to comprehend now that Roberto Firmino was in fact an attacking midfielder when he arrived at Liverpool from Hoffenheim back in 2015. He was annointed with the no.11 shirt - worn by Salah now - and the debate at the time was where would he fit in a Liverpool team alongside his compatriot Philippe Coutinho.
Liverpool also had an assortment of strikers to choose from as Klopp could call upon Christian Benteke or Daniel Sturridge, who were both considered prolific scorers when Klopp first arrived. A young Divock Origi was also someone Klopp tried upfront as he looked to settle upon a first-choice striker.
Firmino was also used as a striker but Klopp did so occasionally on away trips against the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City. This was primarily due to the fact that the German felt Firmino was the best player to lead Liverpool's press.
A 4-1 away win against Manchester City was where Klopp's ideas about the Brazilian really came to fruition as Firmino starred with a goal and an assist.
In recent times, Firmino dropping deep to link-up play or playing decisive through balls to the likes of Mane and Salah has become a familiar sight at Anfield.
#3: Changing formation from 4-2-3-1 to 4-3-3
Jurgen Klopp had generally used the 4-2-3-1 formation - something he stuck by religiously at Borussia Dortmund and in his first season at Liverpool who reached the League Cup and Europa League finals. Despite being defeated by Manchester City and Sevilla respectively, this was a positive return for the Merseysiders in what was considered a transition period.
Klopp's decision to change to a 4-3-3, a 4-1-4-1 without the ball, suited many players at the club. Sadio Mane could stay high up the pitch and make runs into the channel while Georginio Wijnaldum thrived in his box-to-box role in midfield.
Skipper Jordan Henderson has starred for Liverpool in this system either as a holding midfielder or as a box-to-box player on the right-hand side of a three.
Firmino dropping deep as a false nine means he drags defenders alongside him while also possessing the technical skills to find runners in behind if they didn't get close.
#4: Virgil Van Dijk and Alisson Becker to shore up the defence
Virgil Van Dijk had been linked with Liverpool for the better part of a year as they haggled over a £ 75m transfer fee - a world record fee for a defender. When he did join them for the aforementioned price six months later, the Dutchman proved to be an instant hit as he scored a goal against Everton on his debut.
Centre-halfs are usually not capable of becoming transformative figures in the manner of prolific strikers or midfielders but Van Dijk's impact was instant. His presence made others around him more comfortable. Joel Matip got a proper leader alongside him and Joe Gomez found a partner who was an imperious aerial presence.
Even Dejan Lovren looked better when paired alongside the Dutchman. Andy Robertson had the freedom to move forward aggressively due to Van Dijk's speed which meant that Liverpool could defend higher up the pitch.
Liverpool's defence was their Achilles heel even after Van Dijk's arrival as they found out during a horrid Champions League final in Kyiv. They needed a world-class goalkeeper to transform themselves from contenders to winners and Allison's arrival from the Serie A meant just that.
The Brazilian exuded an aura of calm and confidence around his box and this spread across the whole Liverpool defensive backline. His excellent distribution from the feet, as well as long throws, meant Liverpool added a dynamic into their build-up play from defence.
#5: Full-backs as playmakers
Jurgen Klopp has been really lucky when it comes to his full-backs. Pep Guardiola has spent well over £152 million on Kyle Walker, Danilo, Benjamin Mendy and Joao Cancelo while still not finding two ultra-defendable full-backs.
Klopp, meanwhile, spent £8 million on a left-back relegated with Hull, picked a young prospect from the Liverpool academy and stumbled upon the best full-back pairing in the league. While both Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson are somewhat different in their playing styles, the attacking output provided by the duo over the last couple of seasons has been just madness.
Liverpool thrashing Watford 5-0 last season was when they both really displayed their attacking prowess as Alexander-Arnold grabbed three assists while Robertson finished with two. They would almost finish neck-and-neck in the assists charts as Alexander-Arnold prevailed 12-11 over Robertson that season.
While their prolific playmaking came to be taken for granted in time, no other full-back in the Premier League has managed over six assists this season or the last. Robertson currently finds himself four short of Alexander-Arnold's 12 assists so far this season.
