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It's been some ride for Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp as he celebrates four years in charge as Liverpool boss.

The Reds are now the current Champions of Europe, and are perceived as one of the toughest opponents around, with many opposing teams consumed with fear when tasked with facing Klopp's side, particularly at Anfield.

It's just as Klopp wanted when he arrived at Liverpool , but it hasn't always been this way.

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The team have had to evolve, mature and develop since the German's arrival on Merseyside in order to reach their current state.

Year on year, the Reds have flourished and improved in various specific areas, as a means of progressing into a more complete, well-rounded side. But what were the key tactical transitions for Liverpool under Klopp that ultimately transformed them from a side unable to qualify for the Champions League to eventual winners in less than four years?

2015/16 - The Beginning

When Klopp was initially appointed in October 2015, he quickly did away with Brendan Rodgers’ favoured 3-5-2 and installed his own preferred 4-2-3-1. Klopp tested a variety of formations during that initiation period, however the 4-2-3-1 remained the most prominent up until the end of the 2015/16 season.

The same largely consisted of Nathaniel Clyne and Alberto Moreno operating as Klopp's full-backs, with Emre Can in midfield, Adam Lallana on the right flank, Roberto Firmino as a no.10, and Daniel Sturridge as the team's striker.

Notably, it took the German longer than expected to oversee his first victory at the helm, with his first three matches vs Tottenham, Rubin Kazan and Southampton delivering three draws. That first win eventually came in a 1-0 League Cup victory vs Bournemouth, however the same was quickly followed up three days later by a very impressive 3-1 away league win at Chelsea.

As you would expect, it proved to be an indifferent campaign as Liverpool players tried to tailor their skill set to satisfy Klopp’s high octane approach. Although he didn’t yet have the personnel to play in the manner he wanted, we did see flashes of Liverpool’s future brilliance when Klopp switched to a 4-3-3 to secure a resounding 4-1 away victory at Manchester City just six weeks into his role as the Anfield boss.

However, too often those marquee victories rubbed shoulders with poor results such as the 2-1 defeat to Crystal Palace that preceded that win at the Etihad. All of this accumulated in the Reds finishing the season in eighth position after winning just 13 of their 30 league matches that Klopp was in charge of.

Although, their prowess in knockout tournaments had began to surface with the German leading Liverpool to two finals in both the League Cup and Europa League.

Overall though, the 52 year-old used the campaign to shrewdly begin to integrate his key principles into the team, as well as his playing style. While doing so, he was able to evaluate which players were suitable to executing his intense brand of football, and which players should be sold.

Plenty was learned during that period, with the Liverpool boss able to use that base knowledge to shape his first full campaign at Anfield in 2016/17.

2016/17 - Things begin to take shape

Across the 2016/17 season, Klopp's mark became more recognisable, with a 4-3 opening day victory over Arsenal at the Emirates capturing the new, chaotic nature of the team. Gini Wijnaldum, Joel Matip, Loris Karius and Sadio Mane were added over the course of the summer, with the latter in particular offering a key trait that the team had previously lacked in attack - speed.

Mane offered a penetrative threat in behind opposing defences, unlike the likes of Sturridge, Firmino, Lallana and Phillipe Coutinho, all of whom often preferred to offer a passing option by coming short.

(Image: (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images))

Klopp employed a 4-3-3 to face Arsenal, and that consequently became his freshly established go-to formation, with Mane on the right, Coutinho on the left, and Firmino as the team's new no.9. The Brazilian would perform the role of most advanced attacker differently to those that had come before, though, by showcasing a tendency to drift into midfield while also relentlessly leading the team's pressing efforts.

For the entirety of the campaign, Liverpool pressed extremely aggressively with the awareness that the team's defence wasn't particularly strong. By pressing from the front, the Reds effectively managed to defend without using their actual defenders for the most part.

Passes Per Defensive Action (PPDA) offers an insight into how frequently a team presses, by measuring how many opposing passes are allowed before a defensive action is made to regain the ball. The lower the figure, the fewer passes a team allow before pressing.

Liverpool ended the season having allowed only 7.85 opposing passes on average before carrying out a defensive action, finishing third in the pressing table behind only Manchester City and Spurs.

The consequence of this was that opponents found it difficult to bypass Liverpool’s aggressive press to create opportunities on their goal. They faced an average of 7.6 shots per 90 minutes which was significantly fewer than their average of 10.4 in the season prior.

Meanwhile at the other end of the pitch, Liverpool took an average of 15.9 shots on goal per 90 minutes. This was a minor reduction on their average from the season before of 16.7, but crucially, perhaps as a result of the improved personal up top, the Reds’ were taking more accurate shots with 38% at the very least testing the keeper compared to just 35% in the 2015/16 campaign.

Their improved accuracy in the penalty area was further reiterated in their underlying numbers. They posted an Expected Goals (xG) of 1.7 which bettered their average of 1.5 recorded in the season before.

xG offers an insight into the likelihood of a shot being scored by considering aspects such as difficulty and location, and it tends to provide an accurate summary of whether a team deserved fewer or more goals based on their chances.

The league season ended with Klopp’s men winning 22 of their 38 league matches - a stark improvement on his first season, albeit with the caveat of him taking charge of eight more fixtures. There was also a noticeable boost in their possession average from 56.2% to 61.4% illustrating their growing ability on the ball and also the respect they were acquiring from their opponents.

Yet, Klopp’s men were still a working project. They crashed out of both domestic cup competitions to underwhelming opponents in the form Wolves and Southampton - the latter of which came after defeats home and away in the semi-final.

Even with no Europa League acting as a distraction, they still only managed to finish fourth by narrowly edging out Arsenal by a single point on the final day, however crucially that fourth placed finish secured Champions League football back at Anfield once again.

Improvement was there, but more was still certainly achievable.

2017/18 - On the cusp of history

In the summer that followed, Liverpool signed Andy Robertson, Mohamed Salah and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, with Trent Alexander-Arnold's rise into the first-team also materialising.

Liverpool had a new dynamic in attack, as Salah's arrival permitted Mane to move over to the left flank, where he was able to cut inside regularly onto his favoured foot.

Firmino complemented the pair perfectly, by operating in a central position and regularly withdrawing himself from the areas in which Mane and Salah wished to sprint into from the flanks.

The trident created the perfect storm to disrupt opposing defences as their traits and tendencies blended perfectly together, providing the opposition with two constant problems to solve as a result of Firmino's tendency to drop off, combined with Salah and Mane's preference to run in behind.

Simplistically, from the perspective of an opposing central defender, there is almost always the option to go with Firmino into a deeper zone, or hold position as a means of managing the runs of Mane and Salah, as pictured below.

Around the Christmas period, Klopp formed his new defence. Robertson displaced Moreno as the team's first-choice left-back, and Virgil van Dijk was secured in January from Southampton for a world-record fee.

The impact of the duo on Liverpool's defence proved telling. From the beginning of the season until the end of December, Liverpool conceded 24 league goals. However after the turn of the year, following the introduction of both players into the defensive line, the Reds conceded just 13 league goals.

Liverpool averaged more shots per 90 than the year before with 16.1, and generally faced the same amount with 7.8. The team's average xG had risen, while their xG Against had remained largely identical.

Interestingly though, Klopp's team had reduced their pressing slightly, with 10 passes now allowed before an action was made, compared to 7.85 the year before. This in turn had an impact on their ball possession average which dropped to 57%. The true reasons for this shift remain unknown, but it's likely that Klopp recognised a number of aspects.

Firstly, the team's defence was now better than before in terms of individuals. Secondly, there was little logic in pressing opposing sides such as Burnley, as they would simply hit long and cause Liverpool problems as a result.

Despite Liverpool's improved performance over the campaign, Klopp’s men won 22 league matches which was one game fewer than the season before and subsequently meant they couldn’t better their fourth placed finish. Interestingly though, Expected Points ranked them as the league's second best side behind only champions Manchester City - a sign of things to come.

Whilst their run in the domestic cups was short lived, their exhilarating run in the Champions League put them firmly back on the European map. Although they remained trophyless once again following their 3-1 defeat to Real Madrid in the final, the Reds had reached a point under Klopp whereby they had the performances, now they just needed the results to match.

2018/19 - History secured

Enter Alisson Becker and Fabinho - the recruits that Klopp required in order to introduce a more controlling version of his energetic, emotional football. Two individuals who alongside Van Dijk arriving six months earlier, possessed calming traits, demonstrated a level of assurance, and personified coolness.

During the season, the Liverpool boss mentioned the 3-3 draw versus Sevilla in Europe, and the 4-3 win over Man City two seasons ago as notable lessons that had to be learnt and used as turning points. Klopp's Reds led 3-0 at one point against the Spaniards, and also had a 4-1 lead over City at one stage, but the team simply couldn't oversee control, with chaos always preferred.

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'Organised chaos', Pep Lijnders referenced, when asked to describe Liverpool's development in 2018/19. The Reds had retained the core principles of their volatile, intense, unpredictable football, but had progressed onto a new level by integrating an authoritative dimension to their play, with opposing teams simply struggling to cope with the tempo showcased.

In addition, with Robertson now established as a starter and Alexander-Arnold's rise undeniable, they became Liverpool's primary means of creativity and ball progression, with the midfield remaining largely industrious.

Balance had been integrated into the side. In previous seasons, James Milner spent time at left-back as well as Moreno, and Alexander-Arnold didn't feature as regularly behind Clyne, who is much more limited in possession, so the concept of balance was lacking.

The introduction of Robertson and Alexander-Arnold changed that, though, and once the 2018/19 Premier League season had been concluded, the latter ended the campaign with the most assists ever recorded by a defender with 12, with the former following close behind on 11.

For context, the next full-back on the list was Leicester City's Ricardo Pereira with six.

Klopp's system had become highly functional, with creativity and risk-taking in wide areas, defensive assurance and physicality in central areas, and unpredictability in attack, shown below.

Surprisingly, Liverpool took fewer shots on average in 2018/19 than the year before with 14.2 per 90, and faced very slightly more with an average of 8. The team's average xG came down very slightly, while their xG Against again remained largely identical. However in the league, there was a noticeable drop in their goal against average at 0.72 compared to 1.13 in the year before.

Additionally, Klopp's team appeared to reduce their pressing slightly once more, with 10.5 passes now allowed before an action was made, compared to 10 the year before.

While still being a proactive pressing team, Liverpool have gradually applied rationale with time under Klopp. Rather than rigidly pressing every opponent they face, the team became more selective and realistic depending on the opposition and the game state at hand. Whilst this may have impacted some attacking aspects of their game such as shot frequency, the impact on their defensive prowess is telling.

All of the above accumulated in Liverpool securing their highest ever Premier League points tally at 97, winning a much improved 30 league matches and succumbing to just one league defeat. Although it wasn’t enough to secure the Premier League crown, the season saw a marrying up between those aforementioned performances and the results to accompany them.

Again, pursuit of success in the domestic cup competitions took a back seat with early exits to Chelsea and Wolves as the Reds lined up for another exhilarating run in the Champions League. Liverpool took the scalps of the Champions of France, Portugal, Germany and Spain all en route to the showpiece final in Madrid vs Premier League rivals Tottenham.

For the second year in a run, Liverpool proved to be best attacking side and posted the best xG per shot in the competition, and this time they got their just reward. Their 2-0 victory over Mauricio Pochettino’s side not only delivered the Reds their sixth European Cup, but it was the just reward for several seasons of evolution at Anfield under the stewardship of Klopp.

The German inherited a mid-ranking Premier League side and catapulted them to the top of European’s elite thanks to excellent tactical reinvention and splendid player recruitment.

Now firmly established as one of the best sides both domestically and on the continent, There are still chapters of his legacy still yet to be written and for that reason, it is bound to be another thrilling campaign for Liverpool once again this season.