Admittedly, Dortmund had already started to climb the season prior to Klopp announcing his exit. A seven-game unbeaten run had seen them rise to 10th in the Bundesliga table, with the German only revealing his decision to step down in mid-April after back-to-back Bundesliga defeats against Bayern Munich and Borussia Monchengladbach.
From thereon in, they won six of their last eight matches to clinch Europa League qualification and reach the DFB-Pokal final. It was a triumph considering where Dortmund had found themselves just three months earlier, even if they ultimately fell short in their efforts to win the cup..
But given Dortmund had reached the Champions League final two years earlier and had followed up two Bundesliga titles under Klopp with two second-place finishes, it was still a fall from grace.
Meanwhile, the dream Liverpool ending for their beloved German manager would have been celebrating a treble in five weeks’ time. But even if they are left with only a League Cup to show for their efforts, it is a remarkable turnaround from the campaign the Reds endured last year.
Trophyless and stumbling to a fifth-place finish after challenging for an unprecedented quadruple in 2021/22, the wheels had seemingly come off for a broken Liverpool - like they had for Dortmund back in 2014/15. Suffering relegation in his final season with Mainz also, it appears Klopp has repeatedly encountered proof of the saying, ‘What goes up, most come down.’
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This season has perhaps been a long goodbye for the German as a result, and an epilogue for his Liverpool reign following last year's underwhelming exploits as he gets the Reds back on track before riding off into the sunset. After all, following last year’s failings, most supporters would have bitten your hand off for Champions League qualification and a trophy.
When informing his players of his decision to leave back in January, the Athletic reported that, ‘Klopp joked that his exit was partly their fault because Liverpool had reached such a high level so soon that he felt he could pass the baton on to someone else.’
Regardless of how the season now ends, it should not be overlooked that this campaign has exceeded initial Reds expectations. But now closing in on his final month in the Anfield dugout, Klopp will still be looking to reverse this mini-rut and mastermind one final Liverpool high.
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