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Liverpool overcame Tottenham Hotspur in the UEFA Champions League final at the Wanda Metropolitano in Madrid. The scoreline read 2-0 in the Reds' favor, thanks to goals from Mohamed Salah and Divock Origi.
The first half of the match saw Liverpool start brilliantly as Sadio Mane's cross caught Moussa Sissoko's hand and the Reds got an early penalty. Salah smacked it in from the spot to give Liverpool a very early lead.
After the first goal, Spurs settled into the game and kept hold of the ball. They weren't creating many chances though and they didn't really trouble Alisson Becker. The Lilywhites were finding it difficult to penetrate through the midfield of Liverpool.
The Reds, on the other hand, were maintaining a brilliant shape defensively and looking to hit Spurs on the counter. They did find themselves in attacking positions but they also weren't troubling Hugo Lloris. Liverpool went into the second half with a 1-0 advantage.
The second half of match saw a similar pattern of play with Spurs having more of the ball but not creating many chances. Liverpool were looking the more dangerous side on the counter and James Milner, the substitute who came on for Georginio Wijnaldum, came close with his left foot effort.
In the last 10 minutes, Spurs were pushing some more and bringing out some of Becker. The Brazilian saved Christian Eriksen's good free-kick effort. On the counter, Roberto Firmino's substitute, Origi, smashed it in to win the game for Liverpool and the Champions League.
In this slideshow, we take a look at the three tactics from Jurgen Klopp that won Liverpool the game:
#3 Not giving the Spurs attackers any space to work with
When Spurs announced their starting XI, many thought Liverpool would find it difficult to keep the likes of Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen, Harry Kane and Heung Min-Son quiet, but Klopp had a game plan and Liverpool stuck to it.
Joel Matip and Virgil Van Djik kept Kane out of the game as they won almost every aerial duel. Alli and Eriksen weren't allowed time on the ball and Son was dreadful on the day. It was a brilliant defensive display from the Reds and Jurgen Klopp deserves credit for his team's shape.
#2 Playing both Fabinho and Jordan Henderson in deeper roles
This was a brilliant decision from Klopp and it did pay off massively. When Liverpool took a very early lead through Salah's penalty, Liverpool were allowed to push back and keep Tottenham at bay. One of the biggest reasons why Harry Winks and Sissoko weren't able to create much was due to a tireless display by both Henderson and Fabinho.
Even Eriksen couldn't create much, especially in the first half and for that, the credit goes to Henderson. The Liverpool captain kept the opposition's Danish talisman quiet. Fabinho, on the other hand, did what he has been doing for most of the season: he fought for every duel and ran tirelessly.
His key interceptions in the middle of the park were very important. The Brazilian was also tidy on the ball. All in all, both Henderson and Fabinho had a brilliant game but their defensive performance was much better than their attacking one.
#1 Bringing Divock Origi on for Roberto Firmino
Another masterstroke from Jurgen Klopp and the German is making a habit of this, especially in the Champions League. Against Barcelona in the semi-finals of Champions League, it was Wijnaldum and in the final, it was Origi. Firmino started the match over Origi as the Brazilian returned to full fitness but he wasn't really involved in the first of the match.
His touches were out of order and his passes lacked the zest. Around the 57th minute, Klopp decided to bring Origi on for the Brazilian and it turned out to be a brilliant decision as the big Belgian scored the second goal on the day which settled the match.
The goal was very important as Spurs were looking pretty dangerous in the last 10 minutes and threatening to equalize but Origi had other ideas. At the end of the day, Liverpool won the Champions League of 2019 and it is trophy which they thoroughly deserve.
