No sooner had the news of Klopp's contract extension been released, than another piece of information arrived - a video of assistant coach Pep Lijnders' tactical analysis of the stunning comeback at home in the second leg of the Champions League quarterfinals in '19 was revealed simultaneously. It's not an exhaustive analysis, it's about the general principles of the tactic, and although there are some details involved, it's more of a derivation of existing concepts to make it easier for fans to understand. So, I decided to revisit this classic matchup, and at the same time reflect on my own change in perception from being an avid fan to writing analytical articles, and whether I can dig out the bits and pieces worth sharing from this passionate retrospective.
It is recommended that you watch this video at least once, or at least skim through it, before reading this article, so that your understanding of the content will greatly enhance your reading experience.
Facing a three-goal deficit against Messi's Barcelona in the second round, it was only natural for Klopp, who specializes in pressing, to continue his inherent style and even be more aggressive. As Lijnders mentioned in the video, "We're not pressing, we're chasing." The demands on the players in this round were not only to direct the opponent's passes or organization to specific areas, but also to counterattack by pressing with greater intensity in an attempt to directly take possession of the ball.
This more aggressive standard of execution could easily lead fans to believe that the game was a frenzy of pressing from start to finish, but it wasn't. While "frantic" is definitely the case, it's not the number of presses that increases, but rather the quality of each press. This is evident in the pressure numbers from this game:
Even in terms of pressing success rate, the 25% in this game is only slightly higher than the 24.6% average in the Champions League that year.Lijnders mentioned in the video that the team usually divides the pitch into three zones, with the training focusing on the Mid 3rd area of the pitch, but in this game, the coaching staff asked the players to use the whole pitch as a focus for the pressing area.
The so-called "crazier" and "more intense" pressing is not a reflection of the number of times, but of the intent and desire to execute it every time. In fact, with the absence of Salah and Firmino, the two main players at that time (Salah is still the absolute main player), and the intensive schedule of two matches a week, it is not reasonable to ask the players to maintain such a high intensity of pressing throughout the whole match. If we look back at the game again, it's also clear that the team didn't always press so hard, but rather did it in phases (this frantic and intense pressing was especially evident in the opening half and in the short periods after each goal, with the first three goals coming within the first ten minutes, and the fourth coming when the opponent was distracted by a corner kick).
Lijnders mentions the concept of "Doubt" in the video, which I think is better translated as hesitation and lack of confidence. He emphasized that when executing a tactic, you must first be firm enough to believe that the tactic will lead to victory, and there must not be a single moment of hesitation during the entire execution process; on the contrary, you must make use of this firmness and perseverance to make your opponents have a lot of hesitations in the process of executing the tactic over and over again, and these short-term hesitations are the breakthroughs that you can take advantage of in the high-intensity matches.
In other words, I don't think Liverpool's tactics are the key to this game, as Lijnders himself said, the team won't change their style of play whether they're ahead or behind. What really matters is the commitment of the players, the morale boost given by the fans, and the infectious atmosphere of Liverpool up and down the pitch, which is the decisive factor in crushing the opponent.
Looking back at the stats from this game, the expected number of goals (xG) created by the two teams isn't really that far apart:
Although Barcelona looked as if they were a bit rattled by Liverpool's high tension pressing, they still created 3 Big Chances throughout the game (Liverpool had 5), and under the away goals rule at the time, one goal would have basically ended Liverpool's game. And two of those Big Chances came in the first half.
It is important to mention Alisson, who, despite the fact that Barcelona's expected goal tally for the match was only 1 goal, had a PSxG (Post-Shot xG) of 2.6 goals while only using 5 shots on target, compared to Liverpool's PSxG of 2.5 goals with 7 shots on target, i.e., although they seemed to be overpowered by their opponents, Barcelona were not that bad in terms of efficiency on goal! , in a high tension game that almost needed only a goal to end the game, but met with excellent play from Alisson.
