Neil Humphreys: Juergen Klopp is a winner, not a whiner
Liverpool manager does not use defensive crisis as excuse, he just quietly finds solutions
Juergen Klopp does protest too little. He rarely whines. He just wins.
Yesterday, the Liverpool manager had legitimate grievances and any number of valid excuses to share with the world's media.
He had too many fixtures and not enough central defenders.
Actually, he had almost no central defenders.
But he did not play to the gallery. He did not indulge us with a petulant tantrum.
He tweaked. He defeated Monterrey in the Club World Cup semi-finals yesterday morning (Singapore time).
He moved the Reds a step closer to being the greatest side on the planet.
And still, even now, there is a nagging sense that Klopp is not quite getting the universal acclaim his latest heroics deserve.
Being the self-deprecating one, rather than the special one, his humility makes it difficult for him to acknowledge his astonishing progress, but it also makes it easier for others not to bother, too.
What he achieved against Monterrey can only be adequately appreciated if the playing and coaching personnel are changed.
Consider Manchester City's eternal crisis in central defence.
Pep Guardiola was hailed for his tactical masterstroke of dragging back Fernandinho.
Now imagine Fernandinho picked up an injury and Guardiola pushed Ilkay Guendogan into the back four.
If City pinched a victory, queues would form at the altar of the cerebral Spaniard, bowing at his tactical nous.
Had Jose Mourinho pulled off a similar feat, he would be at the head of his own queue, revelling in his specialness and reminding all and sundry of his limited defensive cover and lack of boardroom support, which only reinforces his peerless genius.
Klopp says almost nothing, certainly nothing reeking of hubris. His words are saved for the ears of the right footballers.
After the 2-1 victory against Monterrey, he ran straight to his captain. Their subsequent bear hug said everything.
Klopp moved Jordan Henderson to centre-back, a position that his skipper had never previously occupied for Liverpool.
Not once.
Henderson slotted alongside Joe Gomez, hardly a regular in recent months, in a back four that also comprised veteran James Milner and Andy Robertson.
They were not so much the Fab Four as they were the Only Fit Four.
After the game, Robertson underlined the defensive effort required, making it clear that all the Scot wants for Christmas is a gift-wrapped centre-back or two.
Once again, Liverpool's modest manager left it to his devoted (and thoroughly well-drilled) players to hint at the magnitude of their collective success.
Virgil van Dijk was a late withdrawal through illness.
Joel Matip and Dejan Lovren are both injured. Potential replacements Fabinho and Georginio Wijnaldum are also out.
Thanks to the League Cup farce, youngsters Ki-Jana Hoever and Sepp van den Berg had featured against Aston Villa and could not warm the bench in Doha.
When teams embark upon extraordinary winning runs, cliche dictates that they require the rub of the green.
As dull pundits insist on saying, it only takes a significant injury to end a trophy chase.
Well, Liverpool have three significant injuries in a single position. Key personnel have unwittingly conspired to possibly derail a campaign at its most critical juncture.
And still, the Reds keep winning and Klopp refrains from complaining, which hints at a possible correlation.
By his own admission, the German has worked on his anger management, recalling the debilitating effects of the vein-bursting outbursts at Borussia Dortmund.
He is not immune to occasional rage against the VAR (video assistant referee) machine even now, but they are far less common.
The meltdowns accomplished nothing beyond a headache and perhaps a jittery dressing room.
He needs calm, not chaos.
With a growing injury list, a fixture overlap and myopic bureaucrats, Klopp had a valid opportunity to do a Mario Balotelli and wonder why always me?
But he continues to smile and play along for the Fifa parade in Qatar, quietly moving towards his goal of a first Club World Cup for Liverpool.
In stark contrast, the Vincent Kompany conundrum has played out like an interminable soap opera at Manchester City.
Why was he allowed to leave? Why wasn't he replaced? Look how impressively Guardiola utilised Fernandinho's defensive attributes (while glossing over John Stones' stalled career on the Spaniard's watch) and so on.
Of late, Klopp has faced much tougher defensive issues with only a fraction of the publicity (and less financial resources, too).
It is probably his fault, too.
When he loses another defender, he does not cry a river but focuses instead on bringing another trophy across the Mersey.
Klopp has no interest in dominating headlines, only football matches. He deserves to do both in the final on Sunday morning.
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