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It was another night of success for Premier League champions Liverpool as they were crowned Team of the Year at the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year awards.

Manager Jurgen Klopp was also named Coach of the Year, while Jordan Henderson finished runner-up to Formula 1 superstar Lewis Hamilton for the evening’s main award.

This latest spate of recognition caps an extraordinary 12 months for the club, who finally ended their 30-year wait for a top flight title in July. The Reds eventually finished the 2019/2020 Premier League season on 99 points, failing to win just six games all season.

Reflecting on his side’s success in an interview with the BBC, Klopp said: “My team deserve this, because they did an incredible job. It’s a mix of talent, character, desire and the power of the club, which is a big one. That all comes together and it was a great moment when we became champions.

“We want to organise a big party when it’s allowed again, could take a little while but until then maybe we can win something else, we will see. We can’t wait to see the fans again and winning this prize in Manchester is even sweeter.”

On his own personal award, Klopp added (via Liverpool’s official website): “When the coach of the Team of the Year becomes the Coach of the Year then I had an outstanding team on the pitch obviously.

“Hendo nearly mentioned all of them, but my coaching staff is obviously the main reason why all the things worked the way they work, so I’m really happy. Usually you win a prize as a football coach, this time obviously all my contenders were from all different kind of sports and I never before won something like that. It’s really nice.

“On behalf of my coaches, I accept it obviously and take it home to Liverpool. Thank you very much.”

Klopp’s win comes just a few days removed from him controversially – in some people’s opinion, anyway – being named FIFA Coach of the Year ahead of Bayern Munich’s treble winning manager, Hansi Flick.

Henderson, meanwhile, has been one of the key components of Liverpool’s fantastic year on the pitch, and the skipper has also had a fine 12 months off it – spearheading the Players Together campaign that raised millions to help the NHS during the coronavirus pandemic.

However, the midfielder was narrowly beaten to the top prize by Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton, who won a record seventh F1 championship this year. Jockey Hollie Doyle completed the podium by coming in third place.

Earlier on in the night, Manchester United striker Marcus Rashford was commended with a special award for his incredible free school meals campaign.

Borussia Monchengladbach striker Marcus Thuram could be set for a long suspension after being sent off for spitting at opponent Stefan Posch on Saturday.

The 23-year-old is highly rated as one of Europe’s most exciting forwards, but his latest actions have caused a widespread backlash, including from his own teammates, following his dismissal.

The incident occurred in the 79th minute of Gladbach’s clash with Hoffenheim, when an altercation between Thuram and Posch led to the Frenchman spitting in the face of the defender.

The forward has been slammed for his petulant action, given the particularly precarious nature of the current global situation amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Players are living in a much different world to their usual surroundings, where contact with one another and the outside world should remain at a minimum.

The coronavirus is an airborne disease which can be transmitted from something as simple as breath or touch, so the sight of one player spitting at another has shocked the sporting world.

The footage, as seen on Get French Football News, clearly shows Thuram spitting towards the mouth of Posch, who quickly puts his hand to his face.

Thuram will have to wait to learn the length of his ban, with a longer suspension than usual likely to be enforced in order to discourage any footballer from spitting at a colleague on the football pitch again, especially in the midst of a pandemic.

The striker’s teammates were made to pay for his actions, as the hosts slipped to a 2-1 defeat to Hoffenheim, with Ryan Sessegnon bagging the winner on 86 minutes – seven minutes after Thuram was sent off in disgrace.

Following the game, Thuram posted a message on Instagram apologising to his ‘Posch, my opponents, my teammates, my family and all those who saw my reaction’, while he vowed to ‘accept the consequences’ of his actions.

Meanwhile, Thuram’s Gladbach teammate Christoph Kramer – who was only recently cleared of his own spitting charge – said via Sky Germany that the incident didn’t ‘look good’ and was not befitting of a ‘role model’.