WWKD: What would Klopp do? The Luis Suarez replacement edition

It is no secret that Borussia Dortmund manager, Jürgen Klopp, is a mad genius when it comes to signing players.  He created his two-time Bundesliga-winning side by throwing together a motley crew of after-thoughts, 'big' club rejects, and lower-tier league stars.  It made me wonder whom he would go after to replace Suarez.

He was actually in a somewhat similar situation having lost Robert Lewandowski to Bayern Munich this summer.  Klopp replaced the 25-year-old Polish striker with Capocannoniere winner, Cirro Immobile of Torino.  Bit of an odd choice for Klopp, but unlike Rodgers, the German no longer has the luxury to develop players.  That's what two titles and a trip the Champions League finals does to supporter's expectations, but what if it was 2010?

That's when Klopp bought Lewandowski, a little known striker who was coming off a stellar season with Lech Poznán, when he lead the Ekstraklasa in goals scored.  He wasn't really replacing anyone, even though Nelson Valdez left the club that summer, but Klopp knew that the 54 goals his club scored the season before would never be enough to win the league.  Lucas Barrios, the team's leading scorer with 19 goals in his first season, stayed on, while Shinji Kagawa was also added.

So basically Klopp would be looking for a star player in a league that has similar style of play.  Call me cray, but the player that probably fits the bill best is Stevie May of St. Johstone in the SPL.  The 21-year-old striker has produced at every level he has played.   In 2011-12, he was loaned out to Alloa Athletic of the Scottish Third Division, where he scored 22 goals in 19 matches.  The season before last, he spent loaned at Hamilton Academical, where he found the net 25 times in 33 matches.  Last year he was one of the leading scorers in the SPL with 20 goals for the Saints.

May has an uncanny style of play, he doesn't possess great pace, but he's quick and tricky on the ball.  He also has a keen sense when to let loose, scoring goals by catching opposition defence and keepers off guard with swift and odd-angled shots.  He is also a decent passer of the ball, tying for his club lead with 5 assists.

Unfortunately, Sheffield Wednesday got to him first, but that could be a good thing.  If he continues to perform in the Championship as he has in every league he's played, Rodgers would be mental not to snatch him up.  I honestly would go ahead and buy the 21-year-old Scot and then loan him back to Wednesday.  He just seems to be one of those players who's style baffles not only opponents, but supporters as well.

Here's a video of all his goals from last season:

Liverpool 4 Borussia Dortmund 0: 5 things learnt

1. Dejan Lovren is the new Boss.  And a much needed one.  He took command of the defence and dared Borussia to attempt attack.  He is what we needed last season when Skrtel and Sakho doted around the field masquerading as defenders who really wanted to just score goals.  That's a bit harsh, but it's nice to be reminded what a centre back who is actually committed to playing defence looks like.  He reminds me of Carra except more athletic.

2. Coutinho is becoming Gerrardinho.  Is it just me or were some of those passes/flicks from the Brazilian very Gerrard-esque?  He's definitely been paying attention to his captain's methods of ball conveyance.  How he did not get chosen for his country for the World Cup is beyond me, but I'm glad he didn't get picked.  The time off probably did him some good.

3. Manquillo is probably already better than Glen Johnson.  No need to beat a dead horse, but me Uncle Joe is probably better than Glen Johnson.  I can't say I was impressed with Manquillo's performance even given the circumstance of just joining the club a couple of days ago, but at least he didn't turn over the ball every time he touched it.

4. We didn't need Gerrard to dictate attack.  And that is huge.  The less our captain has do on the attacking end of the pitch, the better we will be as a side.  If Sterling, Sturridge, Hendo, and Coutinho can dissect defences without the help of Stevie-G, he can concentrate on controlling the middle-third.  I don't think he'll ever be completely cut out of the picture, which nobody wants, but he's also not 26 anymore.  He has plenty of long passes and through balls in store. Though the only stat that should matter to him at this point in his career is league titles. Glory over goals.

5. Aubameyang was playing? The 25-year-old Gabonese striker was invisible today at Anfield.  He scored 13 goals in 26 league matches after coming over from AS Saint Etienne.  In France, he was finally coming into his own, scoring 35 goals in his last two seasons there.  I thought he might be a player worth looking at, before today, I'd pass.  It may have been a friendly, but he was inexistent today and failed to make even the slightest impact.

Liverpool 2, Dortmund 0: Thoughts at the break, panic on the streets of Merseyside

Victor Moses, Abel Xavier, Gabby Paletta, and Mark Gonalez, what do all these Liverpool legends have in common?  They scored on their LFC debut and their goals actually counted.  Iago Aspas scored in his first pre-season match and we all know where it went from there.  It was nice for Lovren to be gifted a set-piece goal on his debut, but at the end of the day, meaningless.  He has been impressive though.

When it's your first match for your new club, regardless if it's preseason or not, and you are shouting 'orders' at your new teammates, that's impressive.  Lovren brings a much-needed presence to the club, someone who is not afraid to take command and responsibility for his side's result.  Carragher had that fire as did Reina in his first few years at the club, last season it was only Gerrard and even he wavered from even a few seasons ago.

Coutinho has been our best player so far, that assist was class and Gerrard-esque.  It's good to see the Brazilian is paying attention to his captain's endless talents.  I can't really say the same for Sterling who has been wasteful to say the least.  He has to do better when he's one-on-one on the box.  Studge is being Studge, as long as he's healthy, he's a threat to score every match.

This is about as close to European football that a friendly can get.  I'm relatively confident this isn't Dortmund's best eleven, but they have been 'spritely'.  Their pace, quickness, and passing has been trying, but our defence, save Glen Johnson on two legs and not his ass, has shut down their every opportunity.  I'm hoping Kelly or me Uncle Joe comes on in the second half for our challenged fullback.

The rest of the side has been 'adequate' but going up 2-0 in the first fifteen minutes seemed to take a little off from both sides.  Since then, Dortmund seems less driven to score and Liverpool more content to take the result.  Hopefully it'll open up in the second half and we'll see another goal or two from Liverpool.  It would be especially nice to see Lambert find the back of the net.