Jurgen Klopp couldn’t ask for more from his Liverpool players on Wednesday night. They won virtually every important battle in midfield against Porto, scoring five goals while also keeping a third clean sheet in four matches.

It was also another reminder of how lethal Liverpool can be. Combining a rigorous work ethic with a philosophy of gegenpressing, the team’s made a habit of tearing opponents apart. Including the 5-0 undressing at the Estadio Dragao, Liverpool has won seven matches by four goals or more in all competitions.

It helped that Liverpool netted twice before the 30-minute mark, putting the onus on Porto to throw another man forward. The away side could then afford to sit back, pick the right moments, and exploit the spaces left behind.

‘They can sit in and counter’

Wary of Liverpool’s counter-attacking prowess, most teams would prefer to soak up the pressure and nick something for themselves on the break. But because Liverpool profits from such good starts, opponents often have to abandon their defensive shell in order to chase the game. And that’s risky.

After conceding a bunch of leads this season – including a 3-0 half-time advantage against Sevilla – Klopp’s players have now shown they can kick on.

“The one thing they learned after Sevilla is game management,” former Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock told BBC Radio 5 Live. “They know they don’t have to press once they are a few goals up. They can sit in and counter, and that’s another side to Klopp’s team we’re seeing.”

It’s no coincidence that Liverpool tends to win when it scores early – which is something that happens a lot. The Reds lead the Premier League with 19 goals in the first 30 minutes of matches, and also set the pace in the Champions League with 12 tallies in that bracket.

Scoring early, in other words, is the way Liverpool coaxes a reaction.

Better without possession

The equation changes when Liverpool is asked to break opponents down. It’s much more difficult for the Merseyside outfit to navigate through two banks of four, as seen against the likes of Burnley and West Brom. In fact, Liverpool has won just three out of the eight Premier League matches in which it controlled 60 percent or more possession.

Liverpool is unlike Manchester City in this sense, weaker at probing and finding openings with world-class passes. Its game is instead based on linear play, with Georginio Wijnaldum usually feeding speed merchants Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah, and Sadio Mane. The goal-happy trio only needs a few touches to do substantial damage. Liverpool just isn’t as comfortable with more of the ball, and that’s why Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte deferred possession when Manchester United and Chelsea visited Anfield earlier in the season. Both earned draws as a result.

Pressing works

But Liverpool can and will get its way. With the industrious Firmino pressing from the front and the likes of Wijnaldum winning second balls, the Reds’ pressing makes opponents uncomfortable.

The win at Porto required a similar display of concentration, as well as incredible industry. The much-maligned Dejan Lovren led the way, stepping in to collect goalkeeper Jose Sa’s errant throw and spark Liverpool’s opening drive. James Milner, who’s always ready to put in a shift, won a pair of duels ahead of Liverpool’s second and third goals. And then Mane, in the midst of a commanding hat-trick performance, intercepted a short pass in the middle of the pitch to set up his team’s fourth.

Asked if it was the perfect performance, Klopp said: “Yes. You could say that of course.”

After going 2-0 down within 10 minutes, most teams would have succumbed to a comprehensive defeat away from home.

At least that’s what Christian Eriksen thinks, who starred as Tottenham Hotspur overcame that deficit to record an impressive 2-2 draw at Italian behemoth Juventus on Tuesday.

The Dane bagged the leveller, firing a free-kick past the Old Lady’s wall and beyond Gianluigi Buffon. It completed a turnaround which, for Eriksen, serves as indisputable evidence of an identity change at Spurs.

“Of course, we are building on every season compared to when I arrived here four or five years ago,” Eriksen told The Telegraph’s Matt Law after the Champions League round of 16 tie. “The games against the top teams when you are 2-0 down after nine minutes, you lost 6-0.

“That’s the thing we’ve changed with the manager coming in, with the players we have here. Everyone has grown up and they are not going to lie down if they are 2-0 down anyway.”

In front of an expectant crowd in Turin, Gonzalo Higuain scored twice early on to give an advantage Juventus seldom surrenders. However, the usually resolute outfit was soon overwhelmed by the visitor’s midfield. Mousa Dembele was at his imperious best, Erik Lamela justified his selection in lieu of fan favourite Heung-Min Son, and Dele Alli showed signs of his explosive form from the previous two campaigns.

Related: Dembele the driving force as Spurs shock Juventus

(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)

But it was Eriksen, an expert infiltrator of space and master of the clipped pass, who drew the most praise. Not bad for a man previously listed alongside the inadequate players acquired using cash from Gareth Bale’s Real Madrid transfer in 2013.

“Tottenham has become, compared to what it was when I came to what it is now, completely different,” Eriksen said. “That’s up to the manager, up to the players and the quality we have in the squad really.”

He added: “We don’t care where we are or what time it is, or which stadium we play in or which we team we play, we always try to dominate, to get the ball forward as quickly as possible and create something.”

Spurs are now out of their toughest spate of fixtures this season. Since the last day of January, the north London club has faced Manchester United, Liverpool, an FA Cup replay against Newport County, Arsenal, and Juventus, collecting three wins and two draws. The second leg with Juventus will be staged at Wembley on March 7.

Tottenham’s chances of escaping Turin with a result have been handed a massive boost.

Juventus boss Max Allegri announced his 19-man squad for Tuesday’s Champions League last-16 first-leg clash with Spurs, with the most notable omission being Argentine attacker Paulo Dybala.

Dybala, 24, suffered a hamstring injury on Jan. 6 against Cagliari and hasn’t played since, with initial reports suggesting he could miss a month. After a hot start to the campaign saw the versatile forward score a dozen goals in eight league outings, injuries and form have seen Dybala return to earth with just three tallies in his last 10 matches across all competitions.

The former Palermo standout was photographed Monday in first-team training with his Vecchia Signora brethren, and will join Stephan Lichtsteiner, Blaise Matuidi, Andrea Barzagli, and Juan Cuadrado on the sidelines.