Jürgen Klopp set for final reminder as Liverpool boss of 'one of biggest mistakes in my life'
Tottenham will not hold happy memories for Liverpool and Jürgen Klopp this season. As we near the end of the campaign, and the German’s time in charge at Anfield, the visit of Spurs this afternoon is a reminder of the biggest Premier League injustice to occur over the past year or so.
Klopp certainly doesn’t need reminding of it. Luis Díaz’s wrongly disallowed goal in north London in September still smarts, and all Liverpool can do is wonder just how much of an impact it might have made on its season.
"I don’t want to make it the biggest subject but I cannot forget the [last] Tottenham game as well," Klopp said during his press conference on Friday to preview today's game. "It was just so strange.
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"Now we play Tottenham and that was obviously not their fault that night — they just played the game. But I would like to win that game for 500 reasons and that we lost there in the way we lost is one of them."
With the Reds’ title challenge having crumbled in recent weeks, it might be too much of a stretch now to suggest it ruined their chances of ending Klopp’s time in charge with another piece of silverware. It would have been interesting to see not only how that game would have panned out, but also what the rest of the campaign would have looked like had the correct decision been made.
There will therefore be revenge in the air for Liverpool today. That’s not the only painful reminder Tottenham will offer to Klopp though.
Facing Spurs one final time means the 56-year-old will be confronted with one of the biggest regrets of his career. A player that he came close to signing, but ultimately had to watch on as he became one of the world’s biggest stars.
Son Heung-min has proven to be an inspired signing for Tottenham. Now captain of the club, he has scored 161 goals in 403 appearances over nine seasons, and with Harry Kane now at Bayern Munich, he is perhaps Ange Postecoglou’s best player.
It’s no surprise then that Klopp is a fan. In fact, had things turned out differently, he might have been Son’s manager once upon a time.
Klopp missed out on signing the South Korea international for Borussia Dortmund back in 2013, with Son instead choosing Bundesliga rival Bayer Leverkusen. "One of the biggest mistakes in my life is not signing Son Heung-min," Klopp admitted to Korean outlet KBS News in November 2021.
"Outstanding player. He is fantastic, a sign of Korean football and one of the best strikers in the world."
Explaining his choice, Son said at the time: "I wanted to stay in the Bundesliga. Leverkusen and Dortmund wanted me. Both teams play in the Champions League but I thought Dortmund would use rotation more than Leverkusen.
"That's why I chose Leverkusen over Dortmund. It's really important to play regularly at my age."
Klopp will hope his mistake doesn’t come back to haunt him later today. Son has scored five goals in his last six league appearances against Liverpool, and will be aiming to claim just his third win over the Reds.
Liverpool.com says: Son does feel like a player that would have suited Klopp perfectly. Not just the way he plays, but his manner certainly chimes with the sort of player the German looks for. Let's hope he has a quiet afternoon at Anfield today.