Klopp’s ‘not proper football’ jibe betrays continued lack of respect for Simeone’s genius
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp’s comments that Atletico Madrid do not play “proper football” betray a continued snobbery over Diego Simeone’s powers as a master tactician and motivator.
Atletico dumped reigning champions Liverpool out of the Champions League with an inspired performance at Anfield on Tuesday night – although Klopp was distinctly unimpressed by the manner in which they did it.
"I don't understand with the quality they have, the football they play. They could play proper football but they stand deep and have counter-attacks,” the German said.
"If I would say all the things I have in my mind, I would look like the worst loser in the world, so I'd better stop."
Similar sentiment has been offered in other quarters with the result being labelled "a heist," dismissed as going against the spirit of the game.
Klopp continued to show his disdain, adding: "The way they play, I just don't get it – I don't get it."
But since when was the moral high ground claimed by certain styles of football?
Klopp may feel his way of playing aggressively high up the pitch in his trademark gegenpressing is the right way to do things.
But there is equally a beauty to Simeone's belief in playing a rigid system of shutting down space and closing off angles; they may be seen as darker arts, by they are arts nonetheless.
There is no right or wrong way to win a game of football, assuming you play within the rules.
And it's not as if Simone's team's performance was full of red cards and bad tackles – two of their goals were scored by defensive midfielder Marcos Llorente, who had been brought on as a substitute to influence the game.
Simeone worked out how to use Liverpool's attacking thrust against them; Atletico intelligently soaked up pressure and then exploited certain areas of the field – it wasn't blind luck that they scored three times last night.
It could be that Klopp's comments are simply borne out of frustration at teams figuring out how to combat his style.
Liverpool will canter to the English Premier League this year but they've lost four of their last six matches, and not all to teams of Atletico's class. Even lowly Bournemouth came close to beating them this month.
And while Klopp publicly derides the quality of Atletico's play, he should look at their record.
Simeone's tactics aren't self-defeating and don't lead down a dead-end, hence why his team has continually punched above their perceived weight in Europe.
Over the previous six years in the Champions League Atletico have been runners-up twice, lost in the semi and quarter-finals – and all to the most dominant team of this generation, Real Madrid, driven on by a peak Cristiano Ronaldo.
Their other campaigns saw them crash out in the group stages in 2018 but recover to win the Europa League, and then lose narrowly last year to Juventus, who were also inspired by their old foe Ronaldo.
That's a fantastic record for a club who arguably have the hardest shift domestically of any other European side, pitting their wits against juggernauts Real and Barcelona year in, year out.
Yet while Klopp rightly gets praise for his brilliance as a coach and his charmisatic persona, Simeone rarely gets anything like the same adulation, often being cast off as an aggressive, cynical coach who sullies the game.
Football ultimately is about winning, and Simeone and Atletico deserve only praise and respect for turning up at Anfield and pulling off a famous victory.
It is snobbish and sanctimonious to suggest anything otherwise.
By Chris Sweeney
