The first half was drawing to a close and frustration at Anfield increased further when Harvey Elliott over-hit a through ball to Luis Diaz, prompting more groans from all four corners of the ground.
Liverpool were trailing and Jurgen Klopp turned to the main stand to gesture angrily at the supporters. Tensions were rising and yet just over an hour later Klopp was happily walking and galloping around, delivering his trademark fist bumps to all four sides of the ground. Quite a turnaround.
Liverpool had delivered perhaps their most brutal half of the season despite missing a number of key players, blowing Luton apart with three goals in fifteen minutes, before Harvey Elliott capped his 100th Liverpool appearance with the 100th goal they have scored in the season all competitions have scored.
Time and time again they find a way and the emphatic nature of this comeback further highlighted their immense strength in depth which will be so integral as Liverpool look to push to the limit on all four fronts. For the sixth time this season they turned a deficit into a victory.
Klopp was so delighted that he drew comparisons to Barcelona’s comeback in 2019 (when Liverpool faced similar injury hurdles) and could barely contain his joy as he spoke of a ‘thunderstorm’ in the second half before admitting he had broken a promise he had made to quit in which he told his players that Barcelona match. He even went so far as to compare the four goals from both nights, linking Conor Bradley’s quick throw-in to Alexis Mac Allister for Cody Gakpo’s goal with Trent Alexander Arnold’s famous corner to Divock Origi and so on.
Jurgen Klopp compared Liverpool’s comeback win against Luton to their historic victory against Barcelona in 2019
Luis Diaz (pictured), Virgil van Dijk, Cody Gakpo and Harvey Elliott all scored in the second half to secure a 4-1 win at Anfield
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‘It’s one of those nights where it’s hard to stop talking. I’m so happy,” Klopp admitted.
‘We had to get used to the crowd in the first half, but the boys already knew that the last pass wasn’t great.
‘The second half, not that I needed proof, but what this place (Anfield) can do together with a bunch of fantastic footballers is so special. Oh my God, I love that. This is an example. This is now their Barcelona. It was against Luton.
‘A difficult situation with enough reasons to give up, but I saw a super group fighting. If you don’t limit yourself to bad thoughts, you can fly and that’s what the boys did. I will mention this game a few times now,” he added.
This is now their Barcelona. It was against Luton. A tough situation with plenty of reasons to give up, but I saw a supergroup fighting. If you don’t limit yourself to bad thoughts, you can fly and that’s what the boys did. I will mention this game a few times now,” he added.
And so when the 56-year-old eventually looks back on his time at Anfield, he will remember some of his most memorable nights, from Borussia Dortmund to Manchester City, Roma and Barcelona.
That list will now include Luton, as one of the most satisfying Anfield nights of Klopp’s tenure.
The Merseyside club have now turned defeat into victories six times this season
Luton boss Rob Edwards praised the atmosphere on the ground and claimed: ‘We saw Anfield and Liverpool at their best’
Chiedozie Ogbene (left) put the visitors 1-0 ahead in the first half after appearing confident in possession and disciplined in their form
Rob Edwards’ side were worthy of their half-time lead – confident in possession, disciplined in form and yet another credit to their manager, but ultimately they were helpless in the middle of Liverpool’s second half.
“We pissed them off, didn’t we? (by taking charge),” Edwards said. ‘After a very good first half, I think we saw Anfield in the second half. It was as if the Kop sucked the ball in.
‘We have seen Anfield and Liverpool at their best. I thought we were good, but they were better. Bigger and better teams have come here and it’s happened to them too, so there’s no shame in it,” Edwards added.
It may also be worth noting that the last time a team beat Luton by three goals or more was in the first two games of the Premier League season. This is a side that is not often picked apart and this was a statement from a depleted Liverpool side heading to the capital for the EFL Cup final, injured but alive in every sense.
“As long as we have 11, we’ll go for it,” Klopp stressed when asked for an injury update ahead of Sunday’s match against Chelsea at Wembley.
The reality is that it is all cup finals now.
But they were powerless against Liverpool’s second-half blitz, with Harvey Elliot scoring the Reds’ 100th goal of the season on his 100th appearance for the club.
Klopp now has six Premier League games remaining at Anfield before leaving the club but said: ‘In my ideal world the best memories are yet to come’
Klopp still has six Premier League matches remaining at Anfield, with Manchester City on March 10.
You have to go back to October 2022, the last time his side tasted league defeat at home. And March 2021 before then.
“In my ideal world, the best memories are yet to come,” Klopp said when announcing his shock departure last month.
Last night he felt nostalgic, but created even more memories. He knows full well the role Anfield can play in the coming weeks and months as they look to earn more. And with the way the mood inside transformed from frustration to ecstasy, the fans will know their role too.