Where does Klopp v Pep rank on a list of the greatest Premier League manager rivalries?

[RedRocket9908]

Where does Klopp v Pep rank on a list of the greatest Premier League manager rivalries?

Would it be up there with rivalries like Sir Alex and Kenny Dalgliesh, Sir Alex and Kevin Keegan, Sir Alex and Arsene Wenger, Sir Alex and Jose, and Conte v Tuchel?

Are there any other big manager rivalries ive missed?

 

[adexkola]

It's not the greatest rivalry (because greatest factors in off-pitch nonsense like "mind games", pizza, fan base hatred, size of fan base and so on)

But in terms of the best rivalry, strictly in terms of quality of football on the pitch, only one other rivalry has an argument and that's Sir Alex vs Wenger from 98' to 05'

 

[Chipper]

Up there near the top. Without doubt it's behind Ferguson v Wenger.

Sir Alex vs Dalglish feels like it was mostly pre-Premier League outside of Dalglish's title win at Blackburn and his short second spell at Liverpool, memorable for the Suarez racism incident and Dalglish supporting him. He'd been away from management for so long that at that point though, and Liverpool were poor on the field so it didn't feel like a deep sustained rivalry at that point.

Sir Alex vs Keegan was only brief too. Pretty much one Keegan meltdown!

Sir Alex vs Jose was a bit more like it but I always saw Jose vs. Benitez as more intense. Ferguson vs Benitez was a thing too of course, that was a big one!

I didn't know Conte v Tuchel was even a thing.

Edit: How could I forget Mourinho v Wenger? That was a bitter one!

The Ferguson, Wenger, Mourinho, Benitez era was great for all this. That's got to be the peak period.

 

[Redcy]

Does anyone really care about Klopp v Pep outside of those teams. Supposed rivalries with saf were always hyped up. Does anyone ever think of a pep klopp rivalry.

 

[Remember the geese]

Not much of a rivalry when one of them is so dominant.

 

[Irwin99]

It's still actually a little one-sided to be anything that amazing, even though Klopp's record against Pep seems to be good. It's one league title vs five i believe?

Now look at the best rivalry the league has ever seen- Wenger vs Fergie 98-05- and you have 4 league wins for United, 3 wins for Arsenal, The invincibles vs the first Treble winners, Keane vs Vieira, RvN vs Henry, Pizzagate, and the RvN incident, the tunnel incident at Highbury. It was a rivalry on another level and it took a fantastic team in Chelsea to break it up.

 

[Gio]

It's not the greatest rivalry (because greatest factors in off-pitch nonsense like "mind games", pizza, fan base hatred, size of fan base and so on)

But in terms of the best rivalry, strictly in terms of quality of football on the pitch, only one other rivalry has an argument and that's Sir Alex vs Wenger from 98' to 05'

Agreed. There’s too much respect and love for it to be number one but those two are comfortably ahead of anything else.

 

[TheLiverBird]

Not much of a rivalry when one of them is so dominant.

Of course it’s a Rivalry

The best around at the moment if you ask me, regarding the quality of the matches especially.

I think that’s the main thing though, the quality between these too when they’ve faced eachother has for me, been some of the best football I’ve seen in my life between 2 teams. They have been exhilarating.

But in recent years they are also 2 teams that at times have been neck and neck with one season finishing 98-97 points, another at 93-92 points and individual seasons where one has reach a record 100 points and the other 99 points

to say it’s not a rivalry is blindsighted tribalism.

it’s easily one of the best the league has seen, up there with Wenger and Alex days imo possibly even better with the craziness of the matches

it’s also perhaps a most bizarre one too, where both managers are respectfully so appreciative of eachother, I actually find it quite refreshing

 

[WeePat]

One side has been completely and utterly dominant, and there’s no hostility. It’s all hugs and kisses. Bullshit rivalry in my eyes

 

[didz]

One side has been completely and utterly dominant, and there’s no hostility. It’s all hugs and kisses. Bullshit rivalry in my eyes

I'm pretty sick of Sky commentators repeatedly telling me that it's a better rivalry because it lacks animosity. The fact that their top 3 stories this morning were all about some rubbish between Alexander-Arnold and Haaland tells me that even they don't really believe it.

 

[Teja]

Too much respect and mutual friendliness out there for it to be a real rivalry. Maybe it was in the eyes of the managers but for popular soap opera style rivalry we need an epic scene like Wenger being sent to stands or that intensity in the tunnel and on the pitch in the old Arsenal - United games.

 

[jadaba]

What I envied from their rivalry is that each of them compelled the other to raise their quality to an extent that I don't imagine would've been reached had the other not been there, and we've, ahem, obviously suffered as a result of that.

At the same time, and this is entirely speculative, I wonder if the threat of the other hindered any experimentation by them. The gulf between both against the rest of the league is vast, but the constant threat of the other could've limited their willingness to take certain risks in styles of play, their quality is more defined by consistency and perfection of a formula rather than any radical reinvention in recent years.

Otherwise I agree with what others are saying in that it's a remarkable rivalry based on their quality but it's lacking in what we love seeing from rivalries - emotion and a sense that they really can't stand the other. Instead it feels like a rap rivalry without diss tracks.

 

[T00lsh3d]

Pep’s has a bigger rivalry the amphetamine withdrawal than he does with Klopp

 

[Zen86]

Not much of a rivalry when they crawl up each others arses all the time, and City mop up every year anyway.

 

[Remember the geese]

Of course it’s a Rivalry

The best around at the moment if you ask me, regarding the quality of the matches especially.

I think that’s the main thing though, the quality between these too when they’ve faced eachother has for me, been some of the best football I’ve seen in my life between 2 teams. They have been exhilarating.

But in recent years they are also 2 teams that at times have been neck and neck with one season finishing 98-97 points, another at 93-92 points and individual seasons where one has reach a record 100 points and the other 99 points

to say it’s not a rivalry is blindsighted tribalism.

it’s easily one of the best the league has seen, up there with Wenger and Alex days imo possibly even better with the craziness of the matches

it’s also perhaps a most bizarre one too, where both managers are respectfully so appreciative of eachother, I actually find it quite refreshing

Klopp would need to have won a few more league titles to have made it interesting. As it is, he's just Pep's bitch. Besides, it's City. That in itself makes it a giant bore fest.

 

[The Corinthian]

It's not really a rivalry - I mean this is what it looks like since 2017/18

17/18 - Man City (Liverpool 4th)
18/19 - Man City (Liverpool 2nd)
19/20 - Liverpool (Man City 2nd)
20/21 - Man City (Liverpool 3rd)
21/22 - Man City (Liverpool 2nd)
22/23 - Man City (Liverpool 5th)

Bear in mind - in only 2 of those seasons out of 6 did Liverpool finish 2nd (other than when they won it).

Compare and contrast to Wenger - Fergie which was miles ahead:

97/98 - Arsenal (United 2nd)
98/99 - Man Utd (Arsenal 2nd)
99/00 - Man Utd (Arsenal 2nd)
00/01 - Man Utd (Arsenal 2nd)
01/02 - Arsenal (Man Utd 3rd)
02/03 - Man Utd (Arsenal 2nd)
03/04 - Arsenal (Man Utd 3rd)

I mean, that's a fecking rivalry.

 

[SuperiorXI]

They can both eat shit for all I care

 

[JogaBonitoRooney]

Their bromance is cringe. There is no rivalry. One is happy because they have an unfair financial advantage while the other is happy to pick up the scraps and win the major trophies here and there. In the end they both look good. Sooner they eff off the better.

Neither have been challenged properly in this era but more respect and appreciation to Klopp because what he's done is more impressive and his team is better to watch.

 

[BaneIsPain]

good football but really boring rivalry

 

[horsechoker]

It's kind of a lame rivalry, it's not even Pep's best rivalry.

 

[Red the Bear]

It's second by the virtue of It's longevity, Fergie Wenger had so much venom which is hard to top and Fergie Jose wasn't really all that much as the latter left after a short while.

It's somewhere in between those two.

 

[Reiver]

The managers and players seem to love each other. The great rivalries - in any sport - contain a bit of animosity. If they could, this lot would have each others children.

 

[Hammondo]

Does anyone really care about Klopp v Pep outside of those teams. Supposed rivalries with saf were always hyped up. Does anyone ever think of a pep klopp rivalry.

Probably been the biggest rivalry in a while.

 

[Hammondo]

It's kind of a lame rivalry, it's not even Pep's best rivalry.

Probably is.

 

[JinnerJamie]

Behind Fergie v Wenger which is the GOAT rivalry, it felt visceral where as Pep vs Klopp feels a bit circle jerk.

 

[Eddy_JukeZ]

Probably is.

Don't see how it's a better rivalry than Pep vs Jose for El Clasico.

The animosity that matches Fergie vs Wenger with Messi/Ronaldo headlining it + other generational players.

Nothing will beat that.

 

[njred]

Klopp would need to have won a few more league titles to have made it interesting. As it is, he's just Pep's bitch. Besides, it's City. That in itself makes it a giant bore fest.

Klopp is the only mgr to have the upper hand against Pep. His record is better head to head. Good research on your part.

 

[Hammondo]

Don't see how it's a better rivalry than Pep vs Jose for El Clasico.

The animosity that matches Fergie vs Wenger with Messi/Ronaldo headlining it + other generational players.

Nothing will beat that.

I honestly don't think he cared much about Mourinho, it was fun but not that exciting.

 

[Eddy_JukeZ]

I honestly don't think he cared much about Mourinho, it was fun but not that exciting.

You'd be heavily wrong, because even the Barcelona players then talked about how Mourinho got under his skin.

 

[Hammondo]

You'd be heavily wrong, because even the Barcelona players then talked about how Mourinho got under his skin.

Well he was very good at annoying people, but not exactly what I meant.

 

[Eddy_JukeZ]

Well he was very good at annoying people, but not exactly what I meant.

You said he didn't care about Jose.

If he didn't care, he wouldn't have a press conference talking about Jose and Jose only.

 

[IRELANDUNITED]

5th or 6th?

 

[Maluco]

Too one-sided in terms of trophies and too boring in terms of friction/tension between personalities and their teams to really be called a top rivalry. Some entertaining games and high points tallys, but no real bite or spark.

As is most things with City, it is dull/hollow and Trent’s own comments highlighted why.

 

[Pscholes18]

They are a rivalry?

 

[Remember the geese]

Klopp is the only mgr to have the upper hand against Pep. His record is better head to head. Good research on your part.

I'm not talking about one off games against eachother. My post made that quite obvious.

 

[Tap]

Is it even a rivalry? They are professional with each other and there’s no open hostility towards the other.

Fergie-Wenger, Jose-Wenger, Fergie-Benitez are better examples

 

[amolbhatia50k]

2nd

 

[Insanity]

It's okay. Klopp has got the better of Pep in the head to head but Pep blows Klopp out of the water in terms of the trophy comparison since both of them have been here.

Sir Alex vs Wenger was much better, imo. As mentioned in one of the posts above, it was much more even before the Emirates and the arrival of Jose. We were going to toe to toe with each other for the biggest prize. Klopp vs Pep has given some great seasons but there have a couple where Liverpool just shat the bed and Pep cantered to the trophy. Also, this pally pally stuff is nice in context of the current generation, but I enjoyed the bitter rivalry that we had with Arsenal. Sir Alex and Wenger going at each other, Keane vs Viera, the on field troubles, The battle of Old Trafford, Pizza gate etc., it all added to the theater. Loved it.

Klopp vs Pep is the second best in the PL era, but it's no match for Fergie vs Arsenal in it's heyday.

 

[Oranges038]

One side has been completely and utterly dominant, and there’s no hostility. It’s all hugs and kisses. Bullshit rivalry in my eyes

Aye, it's a bit of a shit rivalry, no animosity, no rants, no crazy moments. Just bland fake arse licking comments from one side to the other.

 

[ROFLUTION]

They are too nice to each other for it to be a real rivalry imo