Jurgen Klopp has extinguished fear of the big teams at Liverpool... uninspired football under Brendan Rodgers has been replaced by joyful abandon

• Jurgen Klopp's bubbly personality has already rubbed off on Liverpool 
• Roberto Firmino is starting to settle on Merseyside after big-money move
• Philippe Coutinho has taken his game to new heights in recent weeks
• Emre Can has eased the absence of Jordan Henderson in midfield position
• Pessimism after the sale of Raheem Sterling has been replaced with belief
• Read: How Klopp has slapped Liverpool into shape with Gegenpressing

By Ben Grounds For Mailonline

Published: 07:14 EST, 23 November 2015 | Updated: 10:47 EST, 23 November 2015

After Brendan Rodgers' strained efforts to find solutions to Liverpool's persistent problems against the Premier League's big clubs, all the players needed was a hug from their manager.

Jurgen Klopp has brought his beaming smile and back-slapping tendencies to the touchline, and while Rodgers took nine attempts to beat top four opposition, the German has come away with six points in first two encounters.

Sportsmail looks at five key reasons why Liverpool have overcome their mental block on the biggest stage to haul themselves to within six points of the Champions League places.

Jurgen Klopp has had greater success against the Premier League elite than predecessor Brendan Rodgers

Roberto Firmino is starting to settle on Merseyside after his big-money transfer from Hoffenheim last summer

Firmino comes to the fore

Roberto Firmino was well on his way to becoming viewed as one of the flops of the season towards the latter part of Rodgers' tenure on Merseyside. Portrayed as the outcast having barely started a game since his £29million arrival from Hoffenheim, the 24-year-old was struggling to adapt to life in the Premier League.

But the Brazilian has excelled in the false number nine position since the managerial change, and his telepathic understanding with compatriot Philippe Coutinho tore City to shreds in the first half on Saturday evening. 

With Klopp constantly forced to field questions over the fitness of Daniel Sturridge and Christian Benteke also looking on from the bench until replacing Firmino late in the second-half, Liverpool now have a viable alternative to playing the target man at the most daunting of Premier League venues.

Counter-attacking Klopp 

The former Borussia Dortmund manager was renowned for his faith in 'Gegenpressing' at the Westfalenstadion, and the waspish nature of the high-pressing game bore fruit once more at the Etihad, with the Reds coming away victorious despite having only 42 per cent possession.

Winning the ball high up the field was de rigueur under Rodgers during the 2013-14 season in which the Reds came so close to winning the title, but the departure of Luis Suarez to Barcelona the following summer resulted in attacking teams with joyful abandon being replaced by uninspired football. But the spark has now returned. 

Klopp has instilled the same high-pressing game in his players that proved successful at Borussia Dortmund

Philippe Coutinho has taken his game to new heights in the short space of time Klopp has been in charge

Coutinho has gone up a notch

Philippe Coutinho was the stand-out performer against the Citizens, and while he has always enjoyed playing against City, the little magician's fourth goal in five games against them was finished with the air of someone determined to make scoring a regular part of his game.

Sportsmail's Jamie Redknapp questioned whether he could raise his standards to the level of David Silva prior to the game on Saturday evening, and this was his emphatic answer.

Coutinho's fourth strike in three games equalled the number of goals scored in his previous 22 games in all competitions, and having been dismissed earlier in the season for two bookable offences against West Ham, the 23-year-old is now showing signs of becoming the poster boy of the new generation under Klopp.

The Brazilain magician was at his very best as the Manchester City defence failed to cope with his trickery

Emre Can has come into his own in the absence of Jordan Henderson as a holding midfielder in recent weeks

Can able to play in midfield

Rodgers was always a huge admirer of Emre Can's qualities as a ball-playing midfielder, but the former manager struggled to shake his preference for playing the versatile 21-year-old as part of a three-man defence at the start of the season.

But with the arrival of Klopp at Anfield, and the continued absence of Jordan Henderson through injury, the emergence of the Germany international as a vital cog at the base of the midfield should not be underestimated.

Can played a pivotal role in opening up the City defence with a delightful back-heel into the path of Coutinho in the build-up to Liverpool's third goal, and the former Bayer Leverkusen man has been an ever-present this campaign.

Mamadou Sakho is set to be out for a period after suffering medial ligament damage in the 2-1 defeat by Crystal Palace earlier this month, and Klopp may have been tempted to move Can back alongside Martin Skrtel, with Joe Allen coming into the midfield alongside Lucas Leiva, but he opted for Dejan Lovren in order to keep Can in his best position. 

The early weeks of the season under Rodgers was filled with pessimism after the sale of Raheem Sterling

Belief has replaced disillusion over transfer sagas 

Klopp was caught in predictable preamble concerning Raheem Sterling's first appearance against Liverpool since his protracted £49m move to City over the summer in his pre-match press conference, but the manner in which he dismissed the need to dwell on the obvious sub-plot resembled a man not fussed by the club's perceived current stature in the game.

Sterling's departure a year after the sale of Suarez wore away at Rodgers in the end, but those who are left at Melwood are enjoying themselves again, scoring as many goals in their last two away games as managed in their previous 11, with both wins coming against the pre-season title favourites.

Klopp introduced himself in the Premier Leaguer with the 3-1 victory over Chelsea last month, but with victories over the beleaguered Blues ten-a-penny this term, and the loss to Palace at Anfield the following week tempering the German's immediate impact, the startling result over Manuel Pellegrini's side may become viewed as a watershed moment for the Reds.

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