Klopp won the FIFA Best Men’s Coach award on Monday, having led Liverpool to Champions League glory last season.
They have also made a terrific start to the new campaign, their only defeat coming in the Champions League at the hands of Napoli, as Liverpool have surged to the top of the Premier League with six wins from six.
However, Lijnders believes the way Klopp is building for the future at Anfield is just as impressive and makes him comparable to Cruyff, whose influence at Barca as a player in the 1970s and as coach from 1988 to 1996 helped craft a club culture still prominent in 2019.
Asked about Klopp’s FIFA award, Lijnders told a media conference ahead of Liverpool’s EFL Cup tie with MK Dons: “[It is a] big compliment for our structure, I think. For our owners to have faith in Jurgen from the start, giving him a six-year deal. That helps with the trust, to build.
“Big compliment for our team, because without success the individual prizes will never come. Then of course a big compliment for Jurgen himself. I’m really proud. It says a lot.
“He is not only the face of the team, he’s the face of the club and not many foreign managers in a different country made the impact he has made.
“An example I always say is that Cruyff at Barca had an impact in that it’s not only about now, but about the future also.
“He [Klopp] created a real identity about the way we play, the way he wants to play, and that could last for a long time.”
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