A new year, and perhaps a new dawn for Liverpool.
In quite possibly the worst conditions imaginable for their brand of stylish football, they produced the sort of grit and spirit they have so often been accused of lacking, to produce a stunning, last gasp victory at Burnley.
And even if Sadio Mane finally rediscovered his true instinct to remind everyone of his quality, it was not the formidable Fab Four who produced this important win... but members of the much-maligned back four.
Just as it seemed they had blown yet another lead, with Johann Gudmundsson snatching what seemed a late equaliser of his own, the central defensive pairing of Dejan Lovren and Ragnar Klavan – his first Premier League goal – combined for a winner with seconds of stoppage time remaining.
It was a poignant moment, coming just hours after confirmation Virgil van Dijk had officially become a Liverpool player, and reminding everyone that this much criticised defence has developed a team spirit and mentality that could eventually deliver honours.
If Klopp was a little melodramatic in predicting this would be a “football war”, then we certainly had Somme-like conditions with the bleak weather conditions that sprawled from the moor tops above this exposed little stadium.
It was biblical at times, the wind driving sleeting rain sideways across the sodden turf, creating swamp like conditions where each side had to creep forward in search of hard fought territory, unable at times to – literally – get a foothold in the game.
Which made Liverpool's uncharacteristic, gritty performance even more significant.
To have slogged their way through such a horrible contest to take a deserved lead was impressive enough, but then to show such spirit in the conditions says much about the mentality that is slowly emerging.
For all the criticism of the Reds' defence, for all the suggestion they lack leaders, Klopp's men have now gone 16 games unbeaten in all competitions, and they are looking increasingly formidable.
Here, without the culture of Philippe Coutinho – apparently out with a thigh injury, and not (yet) on the plane to Barcelona - the goals threat of Mo Salah and the guile of rested Roberto Firmino, they still had enough about them to produce an important victory.
They did it the hard way, too.
It is difficult to get across just how tough the conditions were, the sheets of sleet flashing across the ground making it difficult for the players on both sides to stand up.
Yet somehow they produced an enthralling contest, high on drama if short on quality.
What few chances arrived in the first half fell largely to Burnley, with Ashley Barnes shooting over from a good position and Scott Arfield coming even closer when he cut in from the left.
With Adam Lallana – in his first start of the season after injury – increasingly influential though, Liverpool always looked threatening, and they took a deserved lead on 61 minutes... if only because it was the game's one true moment of quality.
Mane has looked so out of sorts in recent weeks you wonder where the star of the first few months of this season has gone.
But when an Alexander-Arnold cross was deflected to him with back to goal, his turn and vicious swipe into the top corner was a thing of majesty.
Burnley are a side who refuse to accept defeat easily though.
They weathered a Reds flurry after the goal – with Ben Mee almost putting into his own net - and clawed their way back into the game with only three minutes remaining.
It was the one moment in the game when Liverpool switched off.
A quick throw on the left, too much space for Charlie Taylor to cross and sub Sam Vokes to flick on, and Gudmundsson was there at the far post to convert.
That seemed to be it, a hard fought draw in a tense battle a fair outcome it would seem, until Liverpool's much maligned defenders produced a different story.
Van Dijk may have missed this game to have tests at the training ground, but the message to him from his new defensive team-mates was loud and clear.
