What Jürgen Klopp did on touchline vs Aston Villa as Liverpool boss makes ‘outstanding’ claim

Liverpool only has one game remaining under Jürgen Klopp’s management. Despite the goal-filled match against Aston Villa, Klopp remained composed on the sidelines.

Jürgen Klopp joked before the match at Aston Villa that the PGMOL must be testing him by appointing Simon Hooper to oversee his penultimate game as Liverpool boss. But there was never any chance of Klopp receiving a booking that would have ruled him out of being on the touchline at Anfield next weekend.

With the Holte End at Villa Park chanting ‘Who’s the Scouser in the black?’ at the referee in the second half, Klopp must have raised a smile — not least because it came just minutes after Aston Villa had been fortunate not to concede an indirect free-kick in its own penalty area for a backpass. The biggest errors here, though, came from Liverpool players late on, rather than the officials.

Liverpool’s late collapse matters little in the grand scheme of things but it does offer food for thought for the incoming new head coach, Arne Slot. His side will need to show that it can control matches better than it has done often this season, and that will be the primary task that he faces this summer.

For now, though, the focus is very much on the goodbye trail. Klopp has only 90 minutes left as manager of Liverpool and the post-match celebration of his tenure, should he allow it, will go on even longer.

“I have no doubt about our relationship,” Klopp told the BBC when asked about the traveling fans. “I appreciate that a lot. I can’t and could not yet put it really into words because I have to protect myself a little bit — the emotions will come out.”

If this was a test of his emotions, then next weekend against Wolves — his final match at Anfield — will be even more of an occasion where that will come to the fore. It is sure to be a memorable afternoon, even if there is nothing on the field to play for.

On the touchline at Villa Park, he pulled his cap over his face when the frustrations threatened to get the better of him and got down the tunnel relatively quickly before the emotions took over in front of the away fans. Considering the goals flying in all through the game and the end-to-end nature of the contest, this was a calm version of Klopp, even when decisions went against him. He doesn’t like the limelight, and it would have taken a huge act of dissent for Hooper to caution him in the circumstances.

In part, of course, Klopp’s relatively laidback demeanor was because of the yellow card threat being so well known. Just as much, it was because of the lack of anything on the line.

This is the first time that the end of the season has meant so little under his stewardship, and Liverpool confirmed third place thanks to Arsenal’s win over Manchester United without even having to play themselves. When the dust settles on the season, that will be viewed as progress even if there is a higher ceiling still to reach

“It got away from us,” Klopp said live on Sky Sports, referring to the game against Aston Villa rather than anything bigger this season. “We played really good football. We were really good, played a lot of good stuff and caused a lot of problems.

“Before we changed, we gave them too many chances. It was very intense for the boys. They created too much. They were too often in our box and we made the changes. Then we made a mistake. It happens but in that moment, it opens the door.

“They scored an equalizer and I don’t even know how. The character from the boys tonight was outstanding in our situation. We wanted to win the game. In the moment, when we gave away the 3-2, that was really tricky. That’s it, that’s the story of the game.”

‘Outstanding’ might be slightly exaggerated considering Aston Villa’s late fightback and missed opportunities for both teams earlier in the game, but there is a foundation to build upon for next season. However, it will be up to Slot to tackle that in the summer. For now, the focus is on the emotional farewell that Klopp hopes to avoid being the center of, although he will inevitably be.