“When you consider the winter purchase of Virgil van Dijk and the acquisitions of Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane in the two previous summer transfer windows, you have a strong idea just why critics believe this could be Liverpool’s year.”
“Twenty-five years is a long time [without winning the Premier League]. If we sit here in four years I think we’ll have won one title – I’m pretty sure.”
That was Jurgen Klopp speaking at his first press conference as Liverpool boss in October 2015.
One doesn’t have to be a statistician to know that by next summer, four years – or three full seasons – would have elapsed. Perhaps knowing his promise of an unprecedented PL win hangs in the balance, the passionate German tactician splurged in key areas of the team prior to the commencement of the 2018-19 campaign.
The signings of Alisson Becker, Fabinho, Naby Keita and Xherdan Shaqiri have put Liverpool top of the pile of teams aiming to wrest the title from a Manchester City side that blew everyone away last year.
When you consider the winter purchase of Virgil van Dijk and the acquisitions of Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane in the two previous summer transfer windows, you have a strong idea just why critics believe this could be Liverpool’s year.
Before looking into their chances this season, how about a refresher on the Reds’ progress under the former Mainz manager since his arrival on Merseyside?
Having taken over from Brendan Rodgers early on in the 2015/16 season, the former Dortmund boss then guided the Merseyside club to a League Cup final – which ended in a 3-1 defeat by City – before guiding them to a first European final since 2007 in the Europa League.
However, they fell to another 3-1 defeat, this time at the hands of Sevilla.
Mane was signed from Southampton in the summer, and the Senegal forward had an immediate impact in the 16/17 side.
Liverpool carried a greater goalscoring threat with the attacker in the side, and his influence was apparent as the Reds ended in the top four for the first time since 2014/15.
Mane ended with 13 league goals, and while that stat in isolation might threaten to water down his efforts, it should be noted that he missed January while on Nations Cup duty, before getting ruled out of the final two months of the campaign after suffering an injury in his side’s 3-1 derby win over Everton.
That didn’t stop him from being included in the PFA Team of the Year while being voted Liverpool Player of the Year.
It was perhaps the first key on-field Klopp component of a title-winning team.
Last season, though, saw an outstanding individual in Salah come through the door at Anfield.
The former Roma Wideman blew the achievements of Mane’s inaugural season out of the water in what has to go down as arguably the best individual season in Premier League history.
Salah amazingly shattered tons of records in his first year in Merseyside; not least his 32 league goals which saw him better the joint 31-goal record of Cristiano Ronaldo and Luis Suarez – set in 2007/08 and 2013/14 respectively.
With 44 strikes in all competitions for Liverpool, he surpassed Robbie Fowler’s 1995/96 haul of 36, while crushing Fernando Torres’s debut season total of 33. When you consider Fowler set his record in 53 games and Torres in 46, the fact Salah achieved his feat in 52 appearances makes it even more impressive.
The unstoppable Egyptian’s performances consequently, and deservedly, saw him named PFA Players’ Player of the Year and Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year.
