Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola are both revered as the two best managers of their generation and among two of the greatest of all time. The duo went head-to-head for a number of years in Germany at Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich, respectively, before rocking up at Liverpool and Manchester City to continue their fierce rivalry.
While Guardiola might’ve bested Klopp from a trophy point of view during their period against each other, the ex-Dortmund and Liverpool coach still commands plenty of respect from fans, pundits, but particularly former players. In fact, one superstar who played for both Klopp and Guardiola has opened up about the differences between the two.
The player in question is Thiago Alcantara, who first crossed paths with Guardiola at Barcelona, before the Catalan coach signed him at Bayern Munich. Despite being touted with another reunion at City, Thiago’s next move would see him link up with Guardiola’s adversary, Klopp.
Speaking to the Coaches’ Voice about the two legendary gaffers, Thiago said: “With Jurgen, it was all about energy. With Pep, it was about control. Rules that we have to have before reaching the final area, that’s when freedom comes. It’s completely the opposite [with Klopp], it’s that ‘I want to be comfortable in chaos’.”
Going into more details about the specifics under Klopp, the Spanish international added: “We had a physical team, wanted to play the ball straight pass in front… we are generating more energy for the team. The benefit for the team regarding the energy we had, it’s about the pressure we did when we lost the ball. It was faster than ever I saw in my life, when we lost the ball, we were already making a cage.
“We were all the time putting traps, so when they had the ball we cover situations so we can go 1v1, or our attacking player was in a favourable position. These two players, number eight and number six, they are very linked. This player [the other midfielder] is the physical profile, he will enjoy more the attacking positions.”
Thiago spent four years at Liverpool and was part of the team that won the 2022 FA Cup and the 2022 Community Shield. However, injuries marred his time with the Merseysiders, meaning he only made 68 league appearances during his time at the Anfield outfit.