Klopp Derby lives up to the hype

Put aside for a moment the fact that Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund battled to a 1-1 draw in their Europa League match on Thursday. The result was a good one for Liverpool and not at all a bad one for Dortmund, but that’s beyond the story of the match: the dramatic return of Jurgen Klopp to the Westfalenstadion, the man who raised Borussia Dortmund into the elite of German clubs before leaving last season and joining Liverpool last fall. The fact that the two clubs and fanbases have long held great respect for one another only added to the emotion of the buildup.

Too often in this sport, high profile stories like that wind up coming up short of expectations. They lack the flair, the emotion, the drive that we want from such matches, leaving fans disappointed and let down. This time, though, the so-called “Klopp Derby” lived up to every but of the hype, though, and while the match was far from perfect, those imperfections only served to make it better.

From the very start, the atmosphere of the match was incredible. When both the Dortmund fans and visitors from Liverpool opened the match by singing “You’ll Never Walk Alone” -- a traditional song for both clubs -- it was as haunting as it was exhilarating. From the first kick, you could tell that both teams were feeding off the energy of the occasion, with Dortmund players wanting to prove that they didn’t need Klopp to succeed, and Liverpool wanting to show that Klopp’s new team is the better one.

The fact that both goals in the match came off glaring defensive errors didn’t detract from the emotions both teams and fanbases felt in getting them -- the joy and thrill of the scoring side, the agony of those who conceded. Every touch, every pass, every turnover was watched with rapt attention, and the reactions of the fans to each action was etched out in the cheers and groans from the stands just the same as it was from the words shared by fans on social media.

The two teams fed off the emotions pouring out of the crowd, playing hard and fighting for every ball and every inch of space for the entire match. Sure, sometimes they made mistakes, but there were spectacular moments as well -- multiple fantastic saves from Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller, including a sequence of three saves to deny Liverpool in the second half; Mamadou Sakho’s absolutely tremendous clearance in the first half; several attacking runs and passes from the likes of Philippe Coutinho and Henrikh Mkhitaryan. These players were all-in for the game from the first whistle, even the Dortmund players who and it made for an incredible display to watch.

For once, a hyped up match lived up to everything we could have hoped for. Perhaps the goals from Divock Origi and Mats Hummels could have been flashier or more skill-filled, but the atmosphere, the play on the pitch, the emotion and back-and-forth momentum was everything fans wanted to see from the battle between Liverpool and Dortmund, Klopp’s new team and his old one.

It was exactly the match that we needed to see, and it didn’t matter that it was “only” in the Europa League -- this match wouldn’t have been out of place on any major stage. These were two teams determined to win and do whatever it takes to get that result. Everything around the match only made that display better, and will only build up the hype for the second leg in Liverpool.