Thomas Tuchel and Jurgen Klopp prepare to resume engrossing rivalry

Thomas Tuchel followed in Jurgen Klopp's footsteps at Mainz and Borussia Dortmund and they have something else in common - both are struggling to keep tabs on Manchester City.

For much of the first part of this season it looked as if we would have a three-horse race for the title but recent disappointments for Tuchel's Chelsea and Liverpool's Klopp have seen City go to 1-7 for league glory while Betfred have already paid out on Pep Guardiola's relentless leaders to retain the title.

Liverpool are 8-1 while Chelsea are double that price at 16-1 and it means Sunday's Premier League crunch clash at Stamford Bridge is must-win territory for both sides if they want to come out of City's shadow to force their way back into the reckoning.

It's a fascinating showdown, made more interesting by the managers' similar career footpaths.

Tuchel's big break came in August 2009 when he was appointed manager of Mainz, just over a year after Klopp had departed the Bundesliga club for Borussia Dortmund.

When Klopp left BVB at the end of the 2014-2015, Dortmund targeted Tuchel as his successor and the younger man then moved on to Paris St-Germain in 2018, guiding the French powerhouses to their first Champions League final in 2020.

By that stage, Klopp had already won the Champions League and a long-awaited Premier League title with Liverpool and his compatriot Tuchel has had a similar impact since arriving at Chelsea.

Appointed as successor to Frank Lampard in January 2021, he lifted the Champions League trophy at the end of last season, beating favourites Manchester City 1-0 in the final and, like Klopp, his focus is now on knocking City off their Premier League perch.

The head-to-head record between the managers favours Klopp, who has won nine, drawn four and lost only three of his 16 matches against teams coached by Tuchel.

That trend owes much to the predictable dominance of Borussia Dortmund against Mainz – Klopp won seven of his last eight Bundesliga clashes with Tuchel – but the managers have been hard to split on a more level playing field.

Since Klopp took charge at Anfield, he has faced Tuchel six times, winning two, losing two and drawing two. Liverpool knocked out Dortmund 5-4 on aggregate in a pulsating Europa League quarter-final tie in 2015-16 and the Reds traded Champions League group-stage victories with PSG in 2018-19.

Mason Mount's goal gave Tuchel's Chelsea a 1-0 league win at Anfield last March and the Blues earned a 1-1 draw on Merseyside this term despite playing the entire second half with ten men.

Both teams have scored in 11 of the last 13 Klopp-Tuchel battles including Liverpool's lively European wins over Dortmund (4-3) and PSG (3-2) and they will have to be on the front foot on Sunday to remain realistic challengers to City.

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