The OFFICIAL Liverpool FC thread - Jurgen walks - Stallion vindicated

[Armamike]

The last time I will say this. Next year 😁

[GiveItToTheShooters]

We have done it!
Enjoy everyone, drink up!
We are the Champions!

[Denn Forever]

now maintaining it.  the music  was better in the 80s, so hopefully we'll have it n the 20s.

[Tony Baloney]

https://www.ft.com/content/4640e9d7-58e5-47d9-92a1-2ff3bdef51ce

Some interesting stuff in this.

[laoislad]

https://www.ft.com/content/4640e9d7-58e5-47d9-92a1-2ff3bdef51ce

Some interesting stuff in this.

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[brokencrossbar1]

@Gabriel_Hurl.....you need to update the Trophy Cabinet, no 6 and no 19 and the World Club are missing!

[johnnycool]

The title was never in doubt since January.

Best team won it.

But don't win too many more.   

[GetOverTheBar]

The title was never in doubt since January.

Best team won it.

But don't win too many more.   

Absolutely the best team won. Unfortunately the scenes at Anfield last night on a much greater scale than sport are not ideal.

[johnnycool]

The title was never in doubt since January.

Best team won it.

But don't win too many more.   

Absolutely the best team won. Unfortunately the scenes at Anfield last night on a much greater scale than sport are not ideal.

There were probably more on that beach in Bournemouth..

Lockdown and social distancing is all but over.

[GetOverTheBar]

The title was never in doubt since January.

Best team won it.

But don't win too many more.   

Absolutely the best team won. Unfortunately the scenes at Anfield last night on a much greater scale than sport are not ideal.

There were probably more on that beach in Bournemouth..

Lockdown and social distancing is all but over.

Hard to disagree, at this stage its falling apart rather comically. Might as well just lift it totally and be done with it.

[seafoid]

https://www.ft.com/content/4640e9d7-58e5-47d9-92a1-2ff3bdef51ce

Some interesting stuff in this.

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   https://www.ft.com/content/4640e9d7-58e5-47d9-92a1-2ff3bdef51ce

   Why Jürgen Klopp's Liverpool are on cusp of Premier League glory
Despite Covid-19 delay, ruthless efficiency looks set to deliver first championship title in 30 years

Jürgen Klopp has steadily built a Liverpool side that win more matches by a single goal than previous seasons, and are defensively far more solid © FT montage; Reuters; Dreamstime

Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp said the club would "not get carried away" after amassing a huge lead at the top of the English Premier League table.

The caution looked well placed after football matches were suspended in March due to the coronavirus pandemic. As the virus took its grip, England's leading 20 clubs discussed curtailing the season, threatening to halt Liverpool's seemingly unstoppable march towards a first league title in 30 years.

That charge is back on. Weeks of careful negotiations have led to the introduction of strict heath and hygiene protocols for the resumption of play, even if supporters are not allowed inside stadiums due to social distancing measures.

There are many permutations, but Liverpool could gain the points required to secure the League as early as this week. Having previously been on course to take the title in record time, it will be the latest any club has lifted the Premier League trophy. Every other season has concluded in May.

Asked the secret of the club's impending success, Liverpool manager Klopp said: "No secrets, hard work . . . It's not always [possible] to play our best football, but to give everybody a fight should always be possible."

A statistical analysis of the team's performances helps to show that Liverpool's path to a long desired achievement is not just the product of passion, but also patient planning in the five years since the German took over from former manager Brendan Rodgers.


It is also the result of two decades of Klopp's evolution as a coach, many years of behind the scenes transformation at the club and two seasons of consistent excellence from his players.

Liverpool came desperately close to winning the League last season, narrowly losing out to Manchester City despite accumulating 97 points. It is the highest tally achieved by a side to finish second in the Premier League. 

A slight drop off in Manchester City's performances this season, alongside Liverpool maintaining their form, have led to a less competitive title race this term. 

Liverpool's consistency comes from the side's ruthless efficiency, winning a high number of games by a single goal. That is partly through design. 


Klopp, who managed German clubs Mainz 05 and Borussia Dortmund before arriving at Liverpool in 2015, has described his preferred playing style as "heavy metal football". This combines hard "pressing" — to chase down opponents quickly around the pitch — with rapid, direct attacks. 

The strategy, designed to overwhelm opponents, risked physically exhausting Liverpool's players. In response, over the past two seasons, Liverpool have adapted by playing more patient, possession-based football after going ahead in a match, helping to conserve energy.

"There were times when [Klopp] first came in, in one game we would be incredible and the next game would be garbage," said Liverpool player James Milner. 

"There would be games that we would be ahead and keep attacking and sending lots of numbers forward and get caught on the break. I think you have seen that maturity, the learning of how to win games, manage games better and that knowhow."

This plan is working. Liverpool have secured 13 more points this season than a team with their goal difference — the amount of goals scored, minus the amount conceded — would typically achieve. 

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The club have also benefited from the long term approach of their owners: Fenway Sports Group, a sports investment company controlled by US billionaire John W Henry, which acquired Liverpool for £300m in 2010.

The owners have insisted on a data-driven approach to football's multibillion pound transfer market. This philosophy is pioneered by the likes of Michael Edwards and Ian Graham, Liverpool's sporting director and head of research, who were both hired from Tottenham Hotspur. 

The club's analysts have identified undervalued players from pools of talent that are relatively untapped by their rivals. In recent seasons, Liverpool have signed footballers from bottom-half Premier League teams, such as Sadio Mané from Southampton and Andrew Robertson from Hull City, both of whom have gone on to become stars. 


"Football is an efficient market, but there are inefficiencies in that good players will end up at bad teams occasionally," said Omar Chaudhuri, head of football intelligence at 21st Club, a football consultancy. "If you know that, and no one else is looking at the same place, then you'll find value." 

This has allowed Liverpool to assemble a winning team while staying in compliance with so-called Financial Fair Play regulations, which demand that teams do not spend more than their means.

FFP rules are complex, but are intended to ensure teams break even, or at most, have €30m of losses over three seasons. Some spending is exempt, such as on stadiums, youth academies, or women's teams. The rules limit overspending on players, rather than the club.

That does not mean the club has won on the cheap. Two of its most important recent signings, Dutch centre-back Virgil van Dijk and Brazilian goalkeeper Alisson Becker, vastly improved the team's defence. They were important figures in Liverpool's victory in last season's Champions League, Europe's most prestigious club tournament.

The pair were acquired for world record transfer fees for their respective playing positions, reportedly costing a combined £150m. This outlay is possible because Liverpool are one of the richest clubs in the world, benefiting from its share of the Premier League's multiyear broadcasting worth £9.2bn, more than any other domestic competition in Europe. Annual revenues rose by nearly £78m to £533m in the year ending 31 May 2019.


But Liverpool are still outperforming their competitors relative to their spending. They have the third highest wage bill in the Premier League behind Manchester City and Manchester United. Academic research has shown overall spending on player salaries is the best indicator of a team's final league position.

"We always have said, yes [we want to be] champions," said Klopp with his club on the cusp of a long-awaited triumph. "If it will happen, it will feel really special."

[Tony Baloney]

https://www.ft.com/content/4640e9d7-58e5-47d9-92a1-2ff3bdef51ce

Some interesting stuff in this.

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Follow John Burn Murdoch on Twitter and he goes through all the graphs etc.

https://twitter.com/jburnmurdoch/status/1274644631934906373?s=19

[Maroon Manc]

Klopps done some job, funny how things worked out with the sale of Coutinho.

He should be backed in the transfer market but I don't suspect he will.

[Dire Ear]

Class............that is all

[Blowitupref]

First guy I thought of when Liverpool won the league last night.