Liverpool vs Atletico, Klopp vs Simeone, Don Quixote vs Sancho Panza
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp and Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone are cut from similar cloth, and we explore the pair here.
"“To dream the impossible dream To fight the unbeatable foe To bear with unbearable sorrow To run where the brave dare not go”"
This song, from the 1965 Broadway musical titled The Man from La Mancha, and the 1972 film of the same name, epitomizes quite aptly the ‘underdog ethos undaunted’ that characterizes the football careers, psyche, and philosophies of Diego Simeone and Jurgen Klopp.
These lyrics are singularly subjective, and as such, describe an individual’s quest. Each of these men, like the rest of us, are the hero in our own story.
"“A man who fights for his ideals is the man who is alive.” -Don Quixote"
Klopp and Simeone both would be comfortable donning the coat of this individual, the hero, who, in the words of this song, stands upright facing the sun, steadfast and undaunted against “the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune; and by opposing, overcomes them” – Hamlet, Wm. Shakespeare
Both come from modest middle class backgrounds, one in Argentina, the other, in Germany. They both have found themselves battling windmills at times, as it were, in their respective leagues where often more talented and far wealthier sides have dominated. Think Bayern, and Man City; Real and Barca respectively.
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We will attempt, in this series of articles, to contrast and compare these iconic football managers, examining their ethos and backgrounds; to expose the underlying philosophies that dictate why they approach life, and this game with the such passion, intensity, and dogged determination. Their past and present triumphs are reached by very different means, however, and that contrast is what we shall attempt to review and examine here.
Both are dreamers, both are driven, both have been blessed with a charismatic talent to lead. Both are fighters, having fought their way from the player ranks in the obscure shadows of the lower legions; to the managerial ranks of two of Europe’s elite premiere sides.
Simeone had an illustrious yet belligerent, cantankerous international career to boot. Some will recall an incident in the 1996 World Cup where Simeone clattered into David Beckham from behind trying to get a reaction, which he did, when Beckham lashed out with a foot and caught Simeone in the back of the calves.
Simeone saw yellow for his foul and Beckham got sent off seeing red. This isn’t the first instance between English and Argentinian sides as there is no love lost there. Remember a decade earlier, Diego Maradona and the ‘hand of god’ goal in the 1986 World Cup final.