Andy Gray has hailed Jurgen Klopp as the modern-day Bill Shankly after Liverpool’s 3-1 victory over Manchester City on Sunday afternoon.
The beIN pundit compared the German to the Reds’ legend and claimed that Liverpool fans would do anything for their manager who is a cult hero in Merseyside.
“He’s the modern-day Shankly,” he said on beIN Sports.
Shankly managed Liverpool for a total of 783 competitive games and managed to bring home 1421 points. Klopp has taken charge of 228 matches in all competitions and has secured 458 points – with a better win percentage of 58.77% [Source: Anfield Online]
"He's the modern day Shankly"
Andy Gray pays Jurgen Klopp the ultimate compliment!#beINPL #LIVMCI ? HD11
Live Blog ?https://t.co/ShNcaYFUqX pic.twitter.com/PSttuC34o8
— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS_EN) November 10, 2019
OPINION
Well, this is one of the biggest claims that Gray could possibly make, and although Klopp has managed nowhere near as many games, there wouldn’t be many that would disagree. The German has only been at Anfield for four years, and he has transformed the whole club after tricky spells under the management of the likes of Roy Hodgson and Brendan Rodgers. His personality has become contagious in the North West, and should he bring home the Reds’ first-ever Premier League title this season, there would be no arguments that he is right near the top of that list going forward. It seems early to give someone such legendary status, but there are few managers that get the level of praise and love that Klopp has at Liverpool from the fans in the stands, and that is a massive part behind the comparison between the two managers moving forward. Klopp will know that one Premier League title is the difference between a comparison, and him possibly being pushed out into a league of his own.
