Few players in the history of the game can match the
Spaniard’s medal haul that includes 11 league titles and Champions League glory
with both Barcelona and Bayern Munich.
However, Thiago was not an obvious fit for Klopp’s
energy-sapping demands of his midfielders.
Initial scepticism was borne out during a difficult first
year in England for the 31-year-old. Thiago was just one of Klopp’s key men to
miss a large portion of the season due to injury.
Yet, even when he was fit, there was criticism that the man
whose ability to put his foot on the ball and control the tempo of the game
moved too slowly for Liverpool’s swashbuckling style.
“Thank God these people don’t make decisions,” said Klopp on
the critics.
“He was unlucky with injuries and stuff like this at the start,
but when he is fit he can give the game a real rhythm.
“He’s got an eye for that, he calms the game down in the
right moments, he has a sensational overview of the game.”
That vision has come to the fore as Liverpool approach
immortality by winning an unprecedented quadruple.
The League Cup is already back in the Anfield trophy room
and Klopp’s men will face Chelsea in the FA Cup final later this month.
Liverpool still need a slip-up by Manchester City in the
final four games of the Premier League campaign if they are to win the title,
but the two sides are on course to meet for a fourth time this season in the
Champions League final.
Thiago was man-of-the-match as the Reds beat Villarreal 2-0
in the first leg of their semi-final to put one foot in the final.
No side has ever won all four major trophies on offer to an
English club in the same season.
But Thiago has already completed a clean sweep in two
different countries after winning trebles with Barca and Bayern.
“I enjoyed every period of my career,” he said when asked if
he has ever played better than in recent months.
“For sure I am enjoying 100 percent my time here. We have
this mixture of experienced players and younger players. We create this amazing
ambiance that we help each other.”
Tellingly, Liverpool’s worst spell of the season coincided
with Thiago’s absence due to coronavirus and a hip injury either side of the
turn of the year.
The only time Klopp’s men have lost all season with him in
the starting line-up was an inconsequential 1-0 defeat to Inter in the
Champions League last 16 after winning the first leg 2-0 in the San Siro.
Liverpool have not lost by a two-goal margin in 56 games all
season. Avoid such a defeat again on Tuesday and they will be in to a third
Champions League final in five seasons.
The Reds have come a long way since the first of those
finals when Real Madrid’s Luka Modric and Toni Kroos helped nullify Liverpool’s
press in a 3-1 win for the Spanish giants in Kiev.
A rematch of that clash is also a possibility for Paris on
May 28 should Madrid produce another famous European fightback from 4-3 down
against City in the other semi-final.
However, this time Liverpool have the extra dimension of
their own pass master with Thiago making them tick.