Jurgen Klopp did the best thing possible to beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 – nothing.
The first half at Anfield was frustrating for Liverpool. They played well – when they eventually got going – but simply couldn’t score.
Mohamed Salah watched as Paulo Gazzaniga pulled off a wonderful save to deny him. Sadio Mane headed a good chance wide. Virgil van Dijk couldn’t help but head one straight down the middle for Gazzaniga to tip over. Trent Alexander-Arnold hit one cleanly from the edge of the box but was again denied.
And so the Reds went into half-time a goal down. Spurs found their luck early on – just 47 seconds in – as the ball crashed off Dejan Lovren, then the post, then Harry Kane’s head before finding the net.
But Liverpool had nothing like that. It was very, very easy to watch what was happening and feel that it wouldn’t be Liverpool’s day without changing something.
And yet, Klopp did nothing. He’d moved Salah more central during that first-half, allowing Jordan Henderson to drift wide right, but that was it.
It hadn’t produced a goal by half-time and you could understand any temptation to bring on Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain after his two goals in midweek. Or even Divock Origi to introduced a new attacking threat.
Klopp did neither. He just let things play out in the same system, with the same players, with the faith that the goals would come.
Liverpool simply became more and more dominant over the course of the second half. Henderson got the first from that wide role, while being on the front foot won the penalty.
The fact that the goals came means Klopp deserves all the praise in the world. That faith in his side spread to the team and it brought the victory.
While fans may have wanted Klopp to act at half-time, it’s the fact that he didn’t that beat Tottenham.
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