Jurgen Klopp’s trophy per game record at Liverpool compared to Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley

Jurgen Klopp has announced he will be stepping down as Liverpool coach at the end of the 2023/24 season, bringing an end to what will surely be the defining stage of his career.

The German explained to club media his decision to call time on his Anfield career, revealing the demands of management have taken their toll after nine years in role.

Klopp’s name sits in the Liverpool history books alongside the likes of Bob Paisley and Bill Shankly, previous managers who are synonymous with the club. The era and nature of the job has changed, but Klopp can be credited with reawakening the Reds from their slumber and getting them back to the top of both domestic and continental football.

When it comes to trophies, though, where does Klopp stack up in comparison to Paisley and Shankly?

Klopp has been in charge of Liverpool since October 2015 when he took over from the sacked Brendan Rodgers. He has coached 464 matches in total with the final half a season of his tenure still to come, winning 288, drawing 96 and losing 80.

Their points-per-match record in that period is 2.07, so it’s fair to say the Reds have enjoyed some pretty good times under Klopp. But how does that translate to trophies?

Liverpool took one Premier League title, one Champions League, an FA Cup and the Carabao Cup during Klopp’s reign, as well as smaller trophies like the Community Shield, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup.

The Merseysiders hadn’t won a trophy since the 2011/12 League Cup and were without a league title since 1989/90 when Klopp arrived in 2015, clearly showing the change he brought at Anfield, but his teams have not yielded the level of trophies one might expect over nine years.

That said, Klopp’s Liverpool have come very close to winning more silverware. They lost two Champions League finals to Real Madrid and were fighting for Premier League titles at a time when Manchester City were an almost unstoppable force. Pep Guardiola’s side have won five Premier League titles while Klopp has been at Liverpool.

Overall, though, Klopp has won a trophy with Liverpool every 66.3 games in charge. Given they are top of the league, in the Carabao Cup final and still in the Europa League and the FA Cup, that statistic could improve before he leaves.

Bob Paisley is one of Liverpool’s favourite sons, spending almost all of his playing and coaching career with the club. After two years with Bishop Auckland, Paisley joined the Reds and went on to enjoy a 15-year playing career on Merseyside.

He was then assistant coach for 14 years before succeeding Shankly in the top job. He filled that position for nine years, ending his spell in charge with 518 matches under his belt and plenty of trophies.

This was an immensely successful period for Liverpool as they won the First Division six times, the League Cup three times, the Charity Shield six times, the European Cup three times, the UEFA Cup once and the UEFA Super Cup once under Paisley.

That’s 20 separate trophies, meaning Paisley’s trophy-per-game ratio sits at an astonishing 25.9.

With the way modern football is, Bill Shankly’s record as the longest-serving Liverpool manager may well be safe forever with Klopp’s departure. Coaching the team between 1959 and 1974, Shankly spent 15 years at the helm.

He took charge of more matches than Klopp and Paisley with 723, starting Liverpool’s most dominant period by winning ten trophies during his time in charge before Paisley became his successor.

Shankly has three First Division titles to his name, a Second Division, two FA Cups, three Charity Shields and one UEFA Cup.

The fact he was in charge of so many matches means he would have needed a huge number of trophies to beat Paisley’s record. Shankly has a trophy-per-game ratio of 72.3.