Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool need another miracle against Atalanta tonight if he is to avoid his long farewell turning into a damp squib.
Jurgen Klopp’s tenure at Liverpool has featured more fireworks than most managers amass in their entire careers but, in his almost nine years on Merseyside, few episodes can match the drama and euphoria of 7 May 2019.
Less than a week after being humbled 3-0 at Camp Nou by Lionel Messi, former Reds hero Luis Suarez and Barcelona, Klopp’s men out-comebacked the kings of the remontada themselves with a stunning 4-0 victory to reach the Champions League final.
Nothing less than the same will do tonight in Bergamo, where Liverpool face Atalanta in the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final. Having suffered a shock 3-0 defeat to the Italians at Anfield, they require another resurrection.
History, however, is not on their side. That famous triumph against Barcelona five years ago represents the biggest second-leg deficit that Klopp’s Liverpool have overturned in continental competition. It is also the most recent.
Since the German arrived at the club in October 2015, they have lost the first leg of a European tie on five occasions. In only two of those have they found a way to prevail – and not in any of their last three attempts.
In last season’s round of 16 they never recovered from shipping five goals at home to Real Madrid and lost the return game in Spain. The same opponents successfully defended a 3-1 first-leg lead in the 2020-21 quarter-finals, too.
A year earlier Liverpool almost pulled it off against another Madrid side, Atletico. But having found a goal to level the tie at 1-1 in the home leg, they then collapsed in extra-time as Diego Simeone’s men ran away 4-2 winners on aggregate.
You have to go back to Klopp’s first season at Anfield to find the only other time that his Liverpool have overcome a first-leg deficit in Europe. On that occasion they cancelled out a 1-0 loss in Spain to beat Villarreal 3-1 and reach the Europa League final.
There is some hope to be taken from Atalanta’s recent results, though. For the fourth time in five Serie A games they threw away a lead on Monday against Verona, going two up before drawing 2-2. Against Cagliari and Bologna they lost from winning positions.
As good as Gian Piero Gasperini’s side were against Liverpool last week, they are mercurial – or, to put it in less flattering terms, flaky. And who has won more points from losing positions than any other team in the Premier League this term? You guessed it.
Of course, the tie has greater significance in the context of Klopp’s impending departure. This could be the former Borussia Dortmund coach’s last European match with the club before he walks away from English football this summer.
The January announcement of his intended departure appeared to rouse Liverpool at first, preceding a 12-game run in which they lost just once and lifted the Carabao Cup. Now, a season that promised another challenge for a quadruple is showing signs of unravelling.
Their run ended last month with FA Cup elimination by Manchester United. The defeat by Atalanta was followed by a shock loss at home to Crystal Palace on Sunday which leaves them outsiders in a three-way race for the domestic title.
As much as anything, tonight is about momentum. Can Liverpool change the course of it in the tie, thereby restoring it to their campaign? The great ringmaster Klopp needs more fireworks if he is to avoid his long farewell turning into a damp squib.
