The best and worst thing about Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool is they can’t be boring

After another “crazy” game (and tie) from Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, one that saw his club lose, 4-2, to Roma but advance to the Champions League on a 7-6 aggregate, Klopp was reminded of his record in finals by Das Kelly of BT Sport. In the postgame conference, Kelly said: “You’ve been to the Champions League final before, this is your third [final] with Liverpool, it will be. So, fifth time lucky? Maybe?”

Klopp’s previous two finals with Liverpool were the Europa League final in 2016 against Basel, which Liverpool lost, 3-1, and the loss on penalties against Manchester City in the League Cup final of that same year. He went to the Champions League once and to the German Cup three times with Borussia Dortmund. The only final he’s won of those was the German Cup of 2010-2011. Though not from a knockout competition, his Dortmund side did beat Bayern Munich in the one-off German Super Cup in 2013 and 2014.

After Kelly’s question, Klopp flashed his typical wide and goofy smile and said: “We should start winning but I know already that it will happen. I said it before the semifinals that everybody better remind me from now on that I lost in the last five finals. But life is like this. The only chance to win a final is to go there, and we will try it again.”

The five consecutive losses have seen Klopp labeled as the lovable loser, much like the same insult that Jose Mourinho once pointed at Claudio Ranieri: Always the bridesmaid, never the bride. Klopp is aware of the denigration that comes because of his record in finals. After the game against Roma, he also pointed out that “nobody has thanked me for taking Liverpool to these finals. They do not hang silver medals at Melwood.”

Soccer, like all sports, is supposed to be a zero-sum game. You either win or the effort was in vain. But the fun of Klopp is he also thinks that the game should be entertaining, even under the umbrella of practicality and tactical preparations. Soccer is a spectator sport after all, and the audience deserves to enjoy what they’re watching. He believes in what he calls “heavy metal football.” Fast, aggressive, lots of action, lots of movement, lots of chaos.

The entertainment factor and winning can be at odds, though, especially in a tournament competition. The league is long, spread out and full of teams that can’t always punish Liverpool for their open and often reckless style of play. In a final, that style can and has been fatal. Liverpool and his Dortmund go up against teams of equal or close to equal caliber, teams like Roma, who will punish Klopp’s teams when that heavy metal football leaves areas and weaknesses to exploit. When there’s two games for a result, Klopp’s teams can escape by a goal, but in the final, it has too often ended in tragedy.

The problem is Klopp is an idealist, and rightfully so. And while he has lost several finals, his heavy metal football yields results. The Europa League final was Liverpool’s first final in Europe since the 2006-2007 season, when AC Milan avenged the infamous 2005 Istanbul loss in the Champions League. In his short time at Liverpool, Klopp has taken them back into the top four and to two European finals. He’s turned Liverpool into one of the best teams in the world. No one has scored more goals in the Champions League this season, and no trio has been as prolific as Sadio Mane, Mo Salah, and Roberto Firmino.

More than that, Klopp’s Liverpool are immensely fun to watch. Each game has everything that neutrals and the team’s fans love ... when it works. There are goals, spectacular individual performances, almost non-stop action, and freedom for the players to express themselves. And there is always drama because they will allow their opponents opportunities to beat them or tie. A 5-0 beating of Roma after 70 minutes can easily end 5-2 and then 6-7 on aggregate. That’s Liverpool soccer. It’s Klopp’s philosophical identity that’s both endearing because it mirrors the man’s own joyful and emotionally open identity so much, and fatal because it leaves Liverpool open to pain.

Klopp will not change who he is. Not because he lacks tactical acumen, but because he can’t sacrifice the entertainment factor. That would take away the humanity of his teams. In an old BBC Football Focus interview from 2013, he explained why his philosophy is the way that it is:

“I watch so many matches in my life. Unbelievable. There are some boring game, and then I sleep.” At this point, Klopp pretends to fall asleep.

He continues:

“It’s so boring, I think, why did they meet each other and make this 20, 40, 50, 60 thousand people in the stadium watch this boring game? It’s not OK. So that’s what we want to see, we want to enjoy our own game. If we lose a game, we’d like to win, but if we lose with our way, it’s OK. If we lose with the way of somebody else, you cannot work with this. So, that’s it. It’s very emotional, very fast, very strong, not boring, no chess.” Here Klopp pretends to move chess pieces around.

“Of course tactically, yes, but tactics,” he pounds his over his heart, “with big heart. Tactical things are so important, you cannot win without tactical things but the emotions make the difference. Life in our game, that’s important.”

The Champions League final against Real Madrid will be the ultimate test for Klopp’s philosophy. If Liverpool continues to play the way they have under him, Madrid will have chances to win. And whenever Madrid has had opportunities, they’ve taken them better than anyone else. Yet, it’s impossible to imagine Klopp restraining his ideals even in the face of the back-to-back winners of the tournament. He has to prove he’s more than the lovable loser, but one thing’s for sure: Win or lose, a Klopp team, this Liverpool, will never be boring.