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Every season he is Liverpool’s prime target before the ball is kicked.
The importance of achieving that has always been recognized by owner Fenway Sports Group, Jürgen Klopp and his staff.
The wealth of Champions League football helped Klopp build a winning machine. It also allowed Liverpool to pay the wages needed to retain elite talent and invest heavily in the club’s infrastructure.
Before Klopp took charge of his first full season, Liverpool had secured only one Premier League top-four finish in seven tumultuous seasons. It has always been — finishing 4th, 4th, 2nd, 1st, 3rd, 2nd.
Along with the former glory, there was also financial stability. Clubs with self-sustaining business models were able to capitalize on that large revenue stream. A final in Paris last season alone would have made him worth over £100m ($116m).
But its coveted status is now in serious question. Liverpool have fallen very quickly and bullish talk of launching a title challenge has been superseded by harsh reality during his three months, facing an uphill battle just to make the top four. .
“It’s not really my main concern at the moment because I have a lot of other concerns, but of course I’m not stupid enough to at least know the distance and who’s there. No,” says Klopp.
Klopp’s Liverpool have lost back-to-back Premier League games to last-place contenders (Photo: Getty Images)
Liverpool scored just 16 of 36 points. That’s the same number after his 12 games during Roy Hodgson’s disastrous reign in 2010-11. For context, Klopp’s men dropped only 22 points overall last season. They are now closer to the bottom three than to the top four.
Homeform used to be a comfy blanket for supporters to cling to during tough setbacks on the road. Liverpool’s 29-match unbeaten league record at Anfield, which dates back to March 2021, was cut short by Leeds’ struggle with United. Since April 2017, we have suffered a home defeat in front of our fans.
Following a record-breaking victory over Manchester City two weeks ago, Liverpool have suffered two consecutive defeats to the Premier League’s survival teams. Nottingham Forest were winless in his ten games and Leeds in his eight.
Most alarmingly, in both cases the result could not be discussed. Liverpool went soft touch. Even mediocre opponents display obvious weaknesses.
They shot in the leg again on Saturday. The first goal states when Joe Gomez’s capricious backpass, accompanied by Alisson’s slip, puts one at the plate for Rodrigo. It was his eighth time Liverpool have conceded the first goal in 12 league games this season, four of them within the first 16 minutes.
Perhaps even worse was the late winner of Crysencio Summerville. First, substitutes James Milner and Curtis his Jones failed to stop a cross from his side out, and Virgil his fans his Dyke, Thiago and Gomez hesitant when Leeds cashed in. is. No one took responsibility. It represents a collective malaise—the legs look tired and the mind confused.
“My main problem in this match was how I defended my second goal,” said Klopp. “Everyone has to defend, but not everyone was there.”
Most impressive was the manager talking about Liverpool’s inability to control their current game. Yes, Ilan Mesurier made some great saves after Mohamed Salah restored the tie, but they were never convincing from the hosts.
They are very vulnerable to counterattacks when their moves crumble. The midfield is so full of holes. they keep working.
Klopp has tried to change personnel and systems, but the same problem remains. You lack energy, cohesion, and belief. More and more indignant howls from the stands were heard as possessions continued to be wasted on Saturday. Frustration is on the rise, and rightfully so. they are shortened.
Yes, injuries play a role. It’s ridiculous how many problems there were on that front. Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota are missed, but it goes deeper than that.
Klopp admitted in August that he would ideally want to take ‘more risks’ in the transfer market, and that owners are not investing enough in the team is hurting Liverpool. It needed more refresh to avoid becoming obsolete.
Maybe FSG has been doing well for too long. It relies too much on Klopp’s ability to balance the book and deplete every last drop of talent at his disposal. I was.
Tom Werner (left), John W Henry (middle, right) and FSG learn the cost of missing out on the Champions League (Getty Images)
Klopp deserves more support, but he himself is not without criticism. We have a team player who really should have moved on last summer who hasn’t contributed anything so far this season.
With Thiago the only senior midfielder Liverpool have signed since signing Naby Keita in 2018, is it really surprising that the middle of the pitch is such an issue?
The hope for Klopp is that the World Cup serves as the long-awaited reset. Players not going to Qatar will get an extended break before Liverpool regroup for December’s training camp in Dubai. It will last until 2023.
Two seasons ago, Klopp qualified for the Champions League after a miserable period.
This time the problem is more widespread and the challenge is bigger. When he loses two of the worst teams in the league in back-to-back weekends, morale plummets and every game looks fraught with danger.
Forget silverware. Liverpool’s proud and profitable top four position is under real threat. It should be especially concentrated in Boston. Failure to do so will have serious repercussions on your balance sheet. Come January, the FSG will have to right the wrongs of the summer.
(Photo above: OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images)
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