Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp is not a fan of Tottenham star James Maddison
Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool have several reasons to hate Manchester City. Fuelled by Pep Guardiola and the 115 charges, the Sky Blues have enjoyed a period of dominance that has coincided with Klopp’s time on Merseyside.
Despite proving to be stiff challengers and also winning the lot, there is a feeling Liverpool could have had so much more. Several seasons were decided on the smallest of margins, one of them being the 2018-19 campaign.
Having made the UEFA Champions League final the previous year, Klopp’s men were ready to challenge for the Premier League title. A busy summer that saw the likes of Fabinho, Alisson Becker, Xherdan Shaqiri and Naby Keita come in, adding much needed quality in the Reds’ roster.
Liverpool ended the campaign with an incredible 97 points, losing just one game along the way. Unfortunately, it was not enough as the Reds fell short by one point to Manchester City. The Reds’ were offered hope in City’s penultimate match of the season against Leicester City, only for Vincent Kompany to ruin it with a wonder strike.
Speaking to The Red Men (via Simply Goal on X), Jurgen Klopp revealed that he was watching the game unfold in real time. The German, a master tactician on the sidelines was keen for then Foxes star James Maddison to close down Kompany, something the English international failed to do so.
“I remember lying on the sofa, I thought I had a stroke. I was shouting at the TV for James Maddison to close Kompany down, but then he scores. Now I don’t like James Maddison.”
Misplaced blame?
That proved decisive as, the Belgian scored a wonder goal that eventually handed City all three points. Any hope we had of securing the title went up in smoke after that and it is no surprise that Klopp isn’t Maddison’s biggest fan.
Maddison isn’t the only Foxes star Klopp should have an issue with. Former Manchester City man, Kelechi Iheanacho missed a sitter to draw Leicester level in the dying minutes of the game, one which could have undone Maddison’s error. Clearly, we have been dealt a poor hand in 50-50 situations the last few years.
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The 2018-19 league campaign for Liverpool was a special one where Klopp’s football came to the fore. We were just millimeters away from not just winning the title but also going undefeated and also breaching the 100 point barrier. Finishing second should not take away form what was a truly special team in it’s prime.
The season, however, ended on a high as Liverpool lifted their sixth European Cup in Madrid, defeating Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 in the final. The Reds would end their hoodoo for the Premier League title the following season, when Klopp led them to number 19. It could have been so much more.
