Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino lead the line – but who partners Virgil van Dijk? And who joins Fabinho in the heart of the midfield in Jurgen Klopp’s best ever Liverpool XI?
The time is nearly upon us. Jurgen Klopp’s last dance as Liverpool manager takes place this Sunday, May 19, as the Reds face Wolves at Anfield in their last match of the season.
In January, the German shocked the footballing world when he announced that this current season would be his last at the helm on Merseyside, and now – following Liverpool’s dramatic 3-3 draw away at Aston Villa on Monday – the day Reds have been dreading for so long arrives this weekend.
Come 6pm on Sunday, the tears will be flowing everywhere you look at Anfield when the whistle is blown on Klopp’s nine-year tenure as Liverpool boss, bringing an end to an incredible journey winning nearly every trophy there is to win.
During that time they have witnessed some magnificent players take to the turf at Anfield. Some were there when the German boss arrived on Merseyside, and helped lay the foundations for success, while others were brought in and developed by Klopp to become world-beaters.
Liverpool’s departing boss has used over 100 players in all competitions during his stint at the Reds and so here, Mail Sport takes you through what we feel is Klopp’s greatest XI, and bench, from the players he has coached during that time.
Jurgen Klopp’s nine years at Liverpool comes to an end following their match against Wolves
Since joining in October 2015, Klopp has coached over 100 players at Liverpool, Mail Sport takes a look at the best 11
Under Klopp, Roberto Firmino (left), Mohamed Salah (centre) and Sadio Mane (right) became arguably the best front three in the world
Goalkeeper: Alisson
There are some names in this team you don’t have to think twice about when selecting. Alisson is one of those.
Klopp called the Brazilian keeper ‘one of the world’s best’ when he arrived from Roma in 2018, and the stopper has more than proved he is during his six years under the German manager.
Great with his feet, and known for making game-changing saves, Alisson has been a revelation under Klopp, and a key member of the side that took home the Champions League and Premier League trophies in 2019, and 2020, respectively.
Don’t forget, he has also proved himself to be clinical in front of goal. His stoppage-time winner against West Brom in 2021 was a magical moment.
Alisson kept a clean sheet in the Champions League final against Tottenham in 2019
Right back: Trent Alexander-Arnold
Once again, this is an easy choice. Klopp is the only manager Trent Alexander-Arnold has played under as a senior player at Liverpool.
After coming through the ranks in the academy, Alexander-Arnold was handed his senior debut for the club by Klopp, aged 18 in 2016 against Tottenham Hotspur.
After that, he never looked back. With the help of Klopp, the English full-back has become a special talent, changing the way the position is viewed. His range of passing is exemplary, and after winning nearly everything, he was appointed vice-captain ahead of this season.
Life under Klopp is all Alexander-Arnold has ever known at Liverpool, now that is about to change.
Trent Alexander-Arnold was given his senior debut by the current Liverpool boss aged 18
Right centre back: Joel Matip
Jurgen Klopp’s praise of Joel Matip in his final press conference says everything you need to know about the centre back’s impact while playing under him. Klopp simply said: ‘Joel, ever seen a better free transfer?’
Many would be inclined to agree with Klopp. As free transfers go, Matip is certainly one of the best. He was brought in by Klopp in the summer of 2016, and he departs the Reds at the same time as his manager after winning 10 trophies under him.
While injuries have hampered him at times during his eight years on Merseyside, Matip’s influence at the back alongside Virgil van Dijk proved pivotal in bringing glory back to Anfield during Klopp’s reign.
Jurgen Klopp said ‘Ever seen a better free transfer?’ in regard to Joel Matip in his final press conference as manager
Left centre back: Virgil van Dijk
Arguably the most transformative signing of the Klopp era, Virgil van Dijk’s impact on Liverpool’s success can be described as nothing less than crucial.
Brought in for a then-world record fee for a defender, £75million in December 2017, Van Dijk transfigured the Reds’ leaky backline to one of the strongest in the Premier League.
When the current Liverpool captain joined the club, the Reds were known as a relentless attacking side that could take on any team in the final third that also conceded goals with regularity.
Van Dijk was the key piece in the puzzle that made Klopp’s Reds a trophy-winning side.
Virgil van Dijk won Man of the Match in the Carabao Cup final in February which was his 10th trophy under Klopp
Left back: Andrew Robertson
Completing the defence is none other than Andrew Robertson. Signed by Klopp from Hull for just £8million in the summer of 2017, not many could have foreseen the Scottish full back’s success at the Reds.
One of the departing manager’s best bargains as Liverpool manager, Robertson has provided 65 assists and scored 11 goals in nearly 300 appearances during his time at Liverpool.
Known for bombing up and down the left wing with regularity, winding up opponents, and a crisp final cross, the Scotland captain showcases just how strong of a coach Klopp is. Robertson fits his system like a glove.
Andrew Robertson proved to be a masterstroke signing by 56-year-old boss after joining for just £8m
Centre defensive midfielder: Fabinho
Now onto the midfield, and anchoring it, we have Fabinho. The Brazilian midfielder, alongside Alisson, and Van Dijk, was exactly what Liverpool needed when he arrived in the 2018-19 season.
It took Fabinho a little while longer to settle into life under Klopp, compared to many others in this team, but once he was comfortable there was nobody better during Klopp’s time at the helm at protecting the defence.
His form may have dropped off during the 2022-23 season, his final campaign at Anfield before joining Al-Ittihad in Saudi Arabia, but for four years Fabinho’s role in the midfield was vital for Klopp’s ‘heavy metal football’ style.
Fabinho was once nicknamed ‘Dyson’ by Klopp because he hoovered up loose balls
Centre midfield: Jordan Henderson
Klopp has coached some special midfielders during his time at Liverpool, such as Thiago Alcantara and Philippe Coutinho, among others.
However, you can’t have Klopp’s best Liverpool side without his most successful captain, Jordan Henderson, in the midfield.
Henderson’s leadership, and incessant pressing, made him the heartbeat of Klopp’s most successful Liverpool side. He is the definition of a mentality monster.
He may not have been bought by Klopp, but he was nurtured by him. Together, both Klopp and Henderson won the lot before their time came to an end last summer.
Jordan Henderson (left) won it all as Liverpool captain while under Klopp’s stewardship
Centre midfield: Georginio Wijnaldum
Last but by no means least in the midfield trio is Georginio Wijnaldum. The Dutchman, alongside Henderson, was a stalwart in the Liverpool midfield between 2016 and 2021 under Klopp.
Wijnaldum rarely put a foot wrong, only missing matches across five seasons at the Reds. Klopp could always rely on the midfielder to do the job, Mr. consistent.
He also popped up with big goals when the Reds needed them. The now Al-Ettifaq midfielder was an inspired substitution in Liverpool’s sensational comeback victory over Barcelona, netting a double in the space of two minutes.
Klopp may not have a Champions League trophy to his name if it wasn’t for Wijnaldum.
Georginio Wijnaldum was an inspired substitution in their comeback win over Barcelona in 2019, scoring a brace
Right wing: Mohamed Salah
Now comes the easy part, the front three. On the right we obviously have Mohamed Salah, potentially Liverpool’s greatest forward in the Premier League era and an inclusion that needs no explanation.
When Salah arrived at Liverpool’s old Melwood Training Ground in June 2017, nobody anticipated the Egyptian would become one of the Premier League’s greatest ever goalscorers, but that’s exactly he has done.
Klopp got the best out of Salah; they clicked as soon as the winger stepped through the door at Liverpool.
The Reds No 11 scored 32 goals in his first season, breaking the record for the most goals in a 38-game campaign, which has now been smashed to smithereens by Erling Haaland.
He has 211 goals in total on Merseyside – and counting. A sensational signing from Klopp which has proved perhaps as decisive as the acquisition of Van Dijk in bringing success.
Salah has proved to be one of Klopp’s greatest ever signings and has been pivotal to his success
Centre forward: Roberto Firmino
Diogo Jota might be lethal in front of goal, but Roberto Firmino takes the centre forward role in this team as a veteran of victorious campaigns in both the Champions League and Premier League.
Firmino was not signed by Klopp, but before the manager arrived he was lost under Brendan Rodgers. What a player he became in the years that followed, nurtured and molded by the German into quite literally a world-beater.
The Brazilian’s importance to the side that won all there is to win cannot be downplayed. He pressed from the front, dazzled defences with a potent mix of cheek and skill, architected attacking moves, and still managed to find the time to score 111 goals under Klopp.
Klopp and Firmino were the right fit for each other, and their work together yielded exceptional results.
Roberto Firmino (left) was not signed by the German manager but was transformed under him
Left wing: Sadio Mane
One of the most important pieces of business Klopp has ever conducted at Liverpool was to bring in Sadio Mane in the summer of 2016.
Klopp knew he had to revamp the frontline following his first season at the club, and he hit the jackpot when Mane arrived through the door from Southampton.
Alongside Firmino and Salah, he completed Klopp’s magical front three that were the driving force for so many of the German’s greatest moments in charge of the Merseyside club.
In his six years under Klopp before leaving for Bayern Munich in 2022, Mane netted 120 times while providing 38 assists in 269 games in all competitions.
Those statistics alone are enough to prove why he makes this team – add in his blistering raw pace and you have one of the best forwards in the world at his peak.
The team we have selected is the side on paper that most people think of when you think of Klopp’s Liverpool.
However, the 11 selected only played together once, and that was in the Champions League final in 2019, in which they beat Tottenham 2-0.
Mane netted 120 goals in all competitions during his time at Liverpool under their departing manager
4-3-3: Alisson; Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joel Matip, Virgil van Dijk, Andrew Robertson; Fabinho, Jordan Henderson, Georginio Wijnaldum; Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane
Substitutes:
Caoimhin Kelleher, Joe Gomez, James Milner, Adam Lallana, Alexis Mac Allister, Thiago Alcantara, Philippe Coutinho, Diogo Jota, Divock Origi
Players from different generations make up a nine-person substitutes bench. Arguments can be made for some of these players to be in the first-team, such as Joe Gomez, Thiago, and Coutinho.
Gomez was a brilliant partner for Van Dijk in the Premier League winning season in 2019-20, while Thiago’s magic in midfield when he stepped out onto the Anfield turf was spellbinding – when he was able to play.
Coutinho was integral to Klopp’s early days as Liverpool boss, scoring screamers and bamboozling backlines. However, he left for Barcelona in 2018, just a season before the club started to rake in the success.
Then we have the likes of James Milner, Adam Lallana, Alexis Mac Allister. All very different players, but important ones, that have made up some of Klopp’s many midfield combinations.
Finally we have the striking options, Diogo Jota, and Liverpool cult hero, Divock Origi. Jota is a clinical finisher who came just after the Premier League-winning season, and shocked many with the goals he has notched up.
Our selected side (above) only played together once under Klopp, in the Champions League final against Tottenham in 2019
Meanwhile, Origi was the man for the big occasion for Klopp. When things needed to happen, on came Origi.
He netted a late goal to seal the Champions League win against Tottenham in 2019, and also a 96th-minute winner against rivals Everton in the same season. He may have largely played a cameo part for much of his Liverpool career, but he proved to be the unlikely hero so often for Klopp.
