Jürgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola are two of the finest managers in modern football and they could meet up to three times in the space of 7 weeks, starting with a crunch clash on Sunday. In all of the past four Premier League campaigns the title was captured by either Guardiola’s Manchester City or Klopp’s Liverpool, and that trend is to continue for at least another year.
First vs second.
— Premier League (@premierleague) April 10, 2022
Champions vs challengers.
Guardiola vs Klopp.
The world awaits.
🔵 #MCILIV 🔴 pic.twitter.com/EWzSnqkxG3
The two juggernauts are currently separated by a single point at the summit of the league table and they are braced for the first of two battles within a week of each other. Two cities collide as Liverpool make the short trip to Manchester on Sunday for a momentous Premier League meeting, six days before the two clubs go head-to-head in an FA Cup semifinal at Wembley.
An additional rendezvous between Liverpool and Man City could be on the cards should they each progress to the UEFA Champions League Final. Both teams have one foot in the semis after the Reds ran out 3-1 winners against Benfica in Lisbon, whilst City recorded a slender 1-0 victory over Atlético Madrid.
Liverpool and Man City get the job done in Europe.
— ESPN UK (@ESPNUK) April 5, 2022
You know what’s next ⚔️🏆 pic.twitter.com/40Qb5nPXQa
Liverpool have already bagged the English League Cup this season and are eyeing an unprecedented quadruple trophy haul, meanwhile Man City have their sights on an illustrious Premier League – FA Cup – Champions League treble. Two months ago it seemed as if Guardiola and his blue army were cruising to a fourth league title in five years, but Klopp’s men have produced an epic recovery to put the celebrations on hold and could yet cancel the party altogether. When they met earlier this season, the Citizens twice came from behind to salvage a 2-2 at Anfield.
The current setups at both Liverpool and Man City have been molded based on the image and philosophy of their current bosses. Man United interim manager Ralf Rangnick recently credited the structures in place at Liverpool and Man City for the continued successes both clubs have endured in recent years whilst United are fast approaching a five-year trophy drought.
Guardiola and Klopp shared a pitch for the first time in 2013 and they have gone on to enjoy a very evenly-split series of battles. The pair have met on 22 previous occasions where both managers collected nine wins apiece while four contests ended as a stalemate. They encountered one another eight times across three competitions in Germany, where Guardiola’s Bayern Munich and Klopp’s Borussia Dortmund each triumphed four times against the other.
Since shifting their managerial rivalry to England, the dynamic duo of Klopp and Guardiola have both gotten the better of the other five times. In his first seven matches against Guardiola’s Man City, Klopp tasted defeat just once although Liverpool are now winless in their last four outings with the Citizens.
Klopp has not faced any manager more times than he has Guardiola and the 23rd meeting between the two could prove the most significant to date with the Premier League title very much on the line. A win on Sunday would take either team to the top of the table with only seven games remaining before the season draws to a close.
After Sunday’s mammoth clash the teams will recuperate and go at it all over again in six days’ time with a spot in the FA Cup Final up for grabs. Should the stars align, the Merseysiders and the Sky Blues will face off in a final showdown in Paris on May 28, with Europe’s top prize there for the taking.
Since Klopp and Guardiola arrived in England following respective spells coaching in the German Bundesliga, the two profound managers have hoisted a combined 15 trophies with their current teams. That tally could rise as high as 18 at the end of this season.
