Liverpool

Real Madrid is a good example

They're usually done with title race by this point

Altomonte said:

Liverpool defeated Chelsea 2:0 today and Klopp was very happy. However, a Draw would probably have been more just: Hazard could (should) have scored 2 goals, one hit the upright and the other was saved by a very good GK.
Barça and Juventus (assuming they reach the CL Semis) may have an advantage over the PL clubs because they are in a tough race for the title while the Spanish and Italian leagues are almost decided.
Let's see how tired Liverpool will be in Porto on Wednesday. I think Klopp is asking a lot from his players.

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Liverpool are riding a wave of adrenaline. I wonder how long it lasts? They will be tired but I think they will get past Porto.

Their fullbacks and especially van Dijk and front three are always playing.

Their schedule looks good though. Huddersfield home on friday before the semis.

Morten said:

Just so you know, there is zero evidence that supports this theory.
In fact, teams that have it easy at home are often knocked out sooner than clubs who have challengers domestically.

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Zero evidence, Morten?
Why did Barça lose in the QF's 3 years in a row?
Answer: they spent too much energy trying to win both La Liga and the Copa del Rey (+ National Team trips to South America).
Real Madrid prioritized CL over the domestic competitions and won (with mostly European players who did not suffer from jet lag).
One undisputed scientific fact, based on published papers by Sports Medicine researchers in Germany, US, and Brazil: Players of soccer teams that are forced to play 3 matches within 6 days run a significantly higher risk to be injured. It's simple human physiology.
Do you think that your Norwegian compatriotes would perform as well in a 10km cross country skiing race if they had raced twice before within 6 days?

Altomonte said:

Zero evidence, Morten?
Why did Barça lose in the QF's 3 years in a row?
Answer: they spent too much energy trying to win both La Liga and the Copa del Rey (+ National Team trips to South America).
Real Madrid prioritized CL over the domestic competitions and won (with mostly European players who did not suffer from jet lag).
One undisputed scientific fact, based on published papers by Sports Medicine researchers in Germany, US, and Brazil: Players of soccer teams that are forced to play 3 matches within 6 days run a significantly higher risk to be injured. It's simple human physiology.
Do you think that your Norwegian compatriotes would perform as well in a 10km cross country skiing race if they had raced twice before within 6 days?

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Yes, there isnt any evidence for it.
Every year RM won the CL except the last one we competed for the league title with Barca/AM.

You want evidence that this theory doesnt work?
Bayern and Juventus, they should walk the CL every year, but they dont, in part because no competition at home hurts.

Its not difficult to understand, really, you want to play opponents that almost every game makes you fight for results, it makes you better prepared for the tough knockout games.

Sure, fatigue is a factor, but not nearly as important as you think.

Morten said:

Yes, there isnt any evidence for it.
Every year RM won the CL except the last one we competed for the league title with Barca/AM.

You want evidence that this theory doesnt work?
Bayern and Juventus, they should walk the CL every year, but they dont, in part because no competition at home hurts.

Its not difficult to understand, really, you want to play opponents that almost every game makes you fight for results, it makes you better prepared for the tough knockout games.

Sure, fatigue is a factor, but not nearly as important as you think.

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Agreed. Many times barca and bayern secure a souble by feb and it feels they can rest and be at the peak for the CL but they get eliminated easily

Bayern in 2014 were expected to be massive favorites after winning a treble a year before and securing the league in Jan but lost 4-0 at Allianz

Although logically teams securing the league should be in a better position but looking at data it's not and the reason is debatable

Morten said:

Yes, there isnt any evidence for it.
Every year RM won the CL except the last one we competed for the league title with Barca/AM.

You want evidence that this theory doesnt work?
Bayern and Juventus, they should walk the CL every year, but they dont, in part because no competition at home hurts.

Its not difficult to understand, really, you want to play opponents that almost every game makes you fight for results, it makes you better prepared for the tough knockout games.

Sure, fatigue is a factor, but not nearly as important as you think.

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The question is how much a soccer result is dependent on physical condition.
I agree that there are other sports where physical fitness is more important - like cross country skiing.
In soccer the physical component is less important, maybe less than 50%. However, it cannot be neglected and the injury risk cannot be denied.
You either slow down or you risk your heakth.
It is my opinion that Messi's subpar performances always come when he does not get enough rest. Typically, that applies to finals scheduled only 2-3 days after semifinals.
As to Liverpool, I give them credit for beating Bayern in Munich despite only 3 days of rest. Let's see if Klopp can sustain that record - I think he is risking a lot by never resting some key players: where would Liverpool be if van Dijk gets a muscle injury?

Useless wankers, thanks for nothing.

Just pay 50m for klopp. And the excuse he cant Ball possesion football, yea right he is playing it for the whole season

As much as I love Pep, Klopp might just be the best coach in the world.

10Rivaldo said:

As much as I love Pep, Klopp might just be the best coach in the world.

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Can claim it if he wins CL, until then no.

I can see Liverpool dominating world football in the next few years. They are unplayable. They players are on drugs!!

stb_1 said:

Can claim it if he wins CL, until then no.

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Meh I'm not a fan of making judgments based on one game, you gotta look at the bigger picture. Just look at how fucking awful Liverpool were before Klopp, and the improvements he made to the team with mostly reasonable spending. Even if Tottenham wins the final, shit happens, that doesn't delete Klopp's absolutely insane achievements so far.

As expected, everyone raving over them since this week's result...

Their victory over you guys was impressive, no doubt about it, but if we're being genuinely serious and realistic here, that result had to do more with Valverde's tactical incompetency...

To put things into perspective, PSG (who have had a largely underwhelming season) were able to put two past them (they went on to completely play them off the park at home) at Anfield. They also came inches away from being knocked out in the group stages- Napoli's striker missed a sitter in injury time...

I don't regularly watch their Premier League matches, so I can't really critique their league performance. But based on what I have read in Manchester City's "Bluemoon" and United's "Redcafe" forum (I frequently visit both sites), they have been a little fortunate to earn some of their results- particularly Sterling's penalty miss at Anfield and that Everton goalie who made a terrible blunder at the dying seconds of the match...

Make no mistake, their a top side (definitely in the top five currently), but to hear people actually comparing them to the likes of Pep's Barca, Bayern's treble winning squad, Zidane's Real Madrid that won three CL's in a row, Manchester United's 2008 squad, is just downright laughable - they aren't even the best team in their own respective league...

If they do end up achieving the double this season (or at least attain one of the two major trophies) and continue to win major titles in the progressing seasons, THEN we can actually start comparing them to the formidable sides I mentioned before in my comment...

Will be quite interesting to see how they will fare in the future...

10Rivaldo said:

Meh I'm not a fan of making judgments based on one game, you gotta look at the bigger picture. Just look at how fucking awful Liverpool were before Klopp, and the improvements he made to the team with mostly reasonable spending. Even if Tottenham wins the final, shit happens, that doesn't delete Klopp's absolutely insane achievements so far.

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Curious to know what your input on Pochettino is- if you had to choose between him and Klopp, who would you go for?