Is Jurgen Klopp’s greatness coming to an end
Success
Jurgen Klopp has been extremely successful since he took over as Liverpool manager in 2015. Klopp had an immediate effect as Liverpool reached the 2015/2016 Europa League Final were they lost to Sevilla. Liverpool also lost 2017/2018 Champions League Final to Real Madrid. Liverpool went one better the following year as they beat Tottenham Hotspur in 2018/2019 Champions League Final. The holy grail for Liverpool is the Premier League and Klopp ended their 30-year drought as The Reds won the 2019/2020 Premier League title.
Signings
Sadio Mane was one of Klopp’s first signing as Liverpool manager. Klopp’s man management skills were unbelievable as Mane scored 120 goals for Liverpool. Mane departed from Liverpool as he signed for Bayern Munich on a fee of £35 million this Summer. Mane normally played wide left for Liverpool before playing as a central striker in the 2021/2022 Premier League season. Mane scored 20 goals on average each season and this was massive in Liverpool nearly winning both the Premier League and Champions League in 2021/2022 season.
Additions
Mane left a big gap in the forward line as Liverpool were forced to sign Darwin Nunez for £85 million. Liverpool dreaded losing both Mohamed Salah and Mane in the same transfer window but broke the bank to make the Egyptian the highest paid player at Anfield. Roberto Firmino, Salah and Mane was Liverpool’s front three for many years as they scored a combined 346 goals. There was a new look front three for 2022/2023 season due to the rise of Luis Diaz and new signing Nunez.
The season
Liverpool scored two goals in their opening Premier League game against Fulham but only had three shots on target which ended in a 2-2 draw. Liverpool misfired in their first home game of 2022/2023 Premier League against Crystal Palace as they only had four shots on target which resulted in 1-1 draw. Nunez had a moment of madness against Crystal Palace as he got sent off halfway through the second half. Liverpool had a better day against Manchester United with having five shots on target but could not cope with the home side at Old Trafford as they lost 2-1. Liverpool best day so far this season was when they scored nine goals against AFC Bournemouth.
September/October
Liverpool was drawn against Napoli, Ajax and Rangers for 2022/2023 Champions League Group Stage. Liverpool scored three goals on two occasions in September & October against both Arsenal and Brighton & Hove Albion. Liverpool are very light in attacking positions after losing Luis Diaz to injury after their game against Arsenal. Salah scored a great goal in Liverpool’s win against Manchester City but has struggled this season as he has only scored four goals in 2022/2023 Premier League. A lot of pressure is on Salah’s shoulders when it comes to scoring as Liverpool got another blow after losing Diego Jota to injury in their win against Man City.
Positives & negatives
Liverpool are being forced to play three games a week due to the Champions League Group Stages been completed before 2022 World Cup starts. Liverpool had seven shots on target in their first Champions League game but had a nightmare at the back as they conceded four goals against Napoli which included given away two penalties. Liverpool have won four Champions League games since then and qualified for the last 16 after beating Ajax 0-3.
Premier League
As good as it was to qualify they had two terrible defeats in between against Nottingham Forest and Leeds United. Against Forest Dean Henderson goalkeeper was Man Of The Match and likewise Illian Meslier goalkeeper was also best performer for Leeds. Liverpool were poor with not been clinical in these two games and their poor form is down to lack of goals by attacking players. Leeds and Forest played very well against Liverpool but Klopp cannot afford to continue playing Salah as a natural striker. Liverpool are currently eight points off fourth place Newcastle in the Premier League and The Reds will have a challenge on their hands to finish in the top four this season. Klopp has created a legacy at Liverpool but it feels that it is slowly coming to an end due to players leaving, injuries to key players and a lack of consistency.
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