When Jurgen Klopp proposed replaying the contentious 2-1 draw against Tottenham, it created a stir across the country. But which other games, if he could wave a magic wand, would he restore? Last month, the Reds were defeated by a last-minute own goal by Joel Matip after a VAR communication error cost them a legitimate goal by Luis Diaz. We’ve also put together a list of eight games that the manager would be thrilled to go back and replay, including several that offered him the chance to drastically alter the course of history.
1. Final of the 2016 Europa League: Basel. In Klopp’s first season at Anfield, the Reds suffered two final heartbreaks: the loss to Sevilla in Basel cost the team a spot in the 2016–17 Champions League.
2. Liverpool defeats Atletico Madrid 2-3 in March 2020. This was a different moment in Liverpool’s history, the game that took place just before everything came to an end. It was supposed to be another historic European evening when Atletico Madrid arrived, but the Spaniards had other ideas. This was the last time a full Anfield saw a game in seventeen months.
3. October 20, 2021; Liverpool 2-2 Man City. Liverpool’s quest for four titles in 2021–2022 led the team to unprecedented heights, but the club’s history may have begun with a home draw against the eventual Premier League winners, long before that was thought to be feasible. In a thrilling match against Man City in October, the Reds led twice and lost the league by a single point. At the end of the season, three points would have probably been sufficient to win a domestic treble.
4. Tottenham 1-1 Liverpool – May 2022. The 1-1 draw with Tottenham at the end of the 2021–2022 season was another Anfield draw that had equally detrimental effects on title hopes that season. These were the first points lost at home in the campaign since October, but Liverpool was still an unstoppable force at Anfield, just as they had been when they won the championship two years earlier.
5. Kiev hosts the 2018 Champions League final. Under Klopp, Liverpool had no right to advance to the Champions League final on just their second knockout round appearance since 2009. With heads held high but more than a hint of regret, they departed Kyiv after Salah was substituted before halftime due to what, if we may be generous, we’ll refer to as a “tactical” foul committed by Sergio Ramos. Before being replaced, the Egyptian player appeared to be in good form, but Loris Karius’s two mistakes ultimately proved to be the game’s deciding factor. Alisson joined the team that summer, and things might have turned out differently if he had been in goal in the game’s pivotal moment.
6. Paris will host the 2022 Champions League final. Four years later, the same final was played, and this time Liverpool entered as favorites hoping to complete a historic treble in Paris. Though a once-in-a-lifetime goalkeeping performance on that occasion kept the story from ending happily, it was an occasion that is ultimately remembered for the wrong reasons and events off the pitch. With nine of the Reds’ 23 attempts on goal, Thibaut Courtois stole the show with a string of game-winning saves.
