[ad_1]
London – The transformation of Liverpool and From Tottenham fortunes under Jurgen Klopp and Mauricio Pochettino has so far been measured in progress rather than in trophies.
All this will change for the winner of Saturday's Champions League final with one of the two claiming the biggest prize in Europe.
Klopp has not made any money since arriving at Anfield in October 2015, while Pochettino has yet to win any trophies in his coaching career.
However, the fact that Klopp and Pochettino are two of the best-rated coaches in world football testifies, if it were needed, that management is not limited to the lifting of trophies.
Klopp has been approached several times. The German has lost three finals as Liverpool boss, to Manchester City penalties in the League Cup and Sevilla in the Europa League in his first season in 2015/16, before fortune favors the Real Madrid in the final of the Champions League last season.
Falling again at the last hurdle would be even more heartbreaking for the Reds after missing the Premier League title by the best margins against City despite the club record recorded with 97 points.
"If I sit here in four years, I'm pretty confident we'll have a title," said Klopp on his first day at Anfield.
Klopp had the impression that if he had not delivered silverware at that time, he would not work more than four years.
Saturday's meeting in Madrid is his last chance to realize this confidence. But even if he lost, Klopp would still be revered rather than removed from office for bringing Liverpool back to Europe's elite.
The five-time European champions have by definition had many beautiful evenings in continental competition. But beating Barcelona 4-0 in the Champions League semi-finals, a return leg to fill the 3-0 deficit of the first leg, could be the best.
"A moment like Barcelona is worth more than silverware .Wow! It's exactly the image we want to draw for the outside world, that's Liverpool," Klopp said.
If Klopp put Liverpool on their perch, Pochettino raised Tottenham to heights never before reached.
The Spurs had played in the European Cup only twice in their history before the arrival of Argentina in 2014. They are now in their very first final of the Champions League and next season will be their fourth consecutive year in the competition.
Pochettino has been criticized for downplaying the importance of national cup competitions. But his vision for Tottenham was greater, to change in his words "the dimension" of the club.
This season will always be remembered as Tottenham was a finalist in the Champions League and opened a brilliant new stadium with a capacity of 62,000 people.
However, to deliver the latter at a cost of more than a billion pounds, Pochettino had to work in conditions that make his achievements even more extraordinary.
While Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona, Juventus and many others are investing hundreds of millions of dollars to finance a dream of the Champions League, the Spurs have not hired any players since January 2018.
This stretched team was also tired by mbadive participation in the final stages of last summer's World Cup, while an injury deprived them of Harry Kane for the quarterfinals and semi-finals.
And yet, the Spurs have always beat their predictions, including recovering their score 3-0 against Ajax in the semifinals thanks to the trio of Lucas Moura in Amsterdam.
"Nobody expected Tottenham to qualify for a final, but we are here for our own merit," said Pochettino. "It makes the thing more amazing and you enjoy it in a different way."
Pochettino even hinted that he could leave if he was victorious in the Spanish capital, having driven Tottenham where no one really believed he could do it.
No matter the manager who finally lifts the famous trophy. This will have been well deserved.
Source link
