Jurgen Klopp is set to be unveiled as the new manager of Liverpool this week and his arrival will bring Jose Mourinho's reign as top managerial dog in the Premier League to a juddering end.
When the charismatic Klopp rolls into Anfield it will be arguably the biggest managerial coronation since Mourinho declared himself to be the Special One when he parked up at Stamford Bridge over a decade ago.
Mourinho caused a sensation in his first stint with the Blues, and created the kind of buzz no manager has replicated in the years since. But his second shift at Stamford Bridge has lacked the same flamboyance and his aura has taken on a cynical hue.
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The alternatives have fallen short. Arsene Wenger has become too aloof, Alex Ferguson was too blunt, the likes of Rafa Benitez, Luiz Felipe Scolari and Roberto Mancini failed to capture the public's imagination in the same way as Mourinho.
Now, if Klopp takes over at Anfield the Premier League will once again have a maverick manager whose utterances will reinvigorate the game.
"Klopp is an easy man to fall in love with," says Jonathan Liew in the Daily Telegraph. He is a "gleeful non-conformist... [who] effervesces with honesty, good intentions, the pure joy of football."
Here's how he will take Mourinho's crown.
Style of play:
Call it what you will, 'gegenpressing' or 'heavy metal football', Klopp's style of play is unmistakeable.
It's "a very high energy game where his players hunt teams down in packs. It's high intensity and it’s good to watch," says Bundesliga expert Archie Rhind-Tutt in the Liverpool Echo.
And Klopp wants his teams to have an "identity". Rory Smith of The Times reports that while in charge of Borussia Dortmund he once said: "The fans should not only recognise us from our black-and-yellow shirts. Even if we were playing in red, everyone in the stadium should think: 'Woah! That can only be Dortmund'."
That philosophy is in contrast to Mourinho's rather more pragmatic approach, which may also involve pressing but can be dour to watch and has not always impressed his paymaster Roman Abramovich.
Management style:
The once-entertaining Mourinho has cut an increasingly cynical figure in recent times, convinced that the officials are against him and his team and instilling a bunker mentality in his squad.
He still provides the odd moment of magic, but it is two years since he compared his Chelsea team to "little eggs in need of a mother" and 18 months since he spoke fondly of a "little horse that still needs milk". There are even signs that all is not well in the Chelsea camp, with Mourinho publicly warning his players that they need to improve their performances.
Klopp on the other hand appears rather more positive, and has the sense of mischief that has deserted the Special One. "The abiding images of him from his Dortmund days consist of a megawatt smile, eyes glinting with a sense of fun and bear hugs for all of his players," says Smith of the Times. Even in his final season with his former club he still managed to raise a smile.
"Dortmund, certainly, were aware that their coach's personality helped to win fans and affection across the world," says Smith. "Liverpool will hope to capitalise, too."
Loyalty:
"Klopp’s relationships last," says Liew of the Telegraph. He has had three jobs in the past 26 years: "Mainz player, Mainz manager, Dortmund manager. In a way, his great achievement at Dortmund was in maintaining some illusion of continuity in a world where there was none."
And a cozy relationship with Liverpool also beckons. "Klopp and Liverpool are a fit so snug they might have been matched on eHarmony."
Mourinho, on the other hand, has never completed more than three seasons at a club, and despite his apparent love for Chelsea things fell apart last time early in his fourth season at the Bridge.
He is now in his third campaign back in west London and the cracks are starting to show. So far this season he has fallen out with the club's medical staff and issued a back me or sack ultimatum to his notoriously trigger-happy owner.
Quotability:
Mourinho may also have met his match in the soundbite stakes, although Klopp does have a propensity to swear.
He once said of player Henrikh Mkhitaryan: "He fits us like an a*** on a bucket. What he offers is exactly what we need."
And his opinion on Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger? "He likes having the ball, playing football, passes. It's like an orchestra. But it's a silent song. I like heavy metal."
Track record:
The one area where Mourinho remains untouchable. Klopp has two Bundesliga titles and a Champions League final to his name.
Mourinho has eight league titles in four countries and two Champions League triumphs under his belt.
