It has been a good season for Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp, which will be capped off in the upcoming UEFA Champions League Final against Real Madrid.
Liverpool has enjoyed a marvelous season with their deadly attacking stars leading the way. In the first half of the season, however, Liverpool was simply just another member of the top-6 pack. They sat in 4th place exactly halfway through the season, just 1 point ahead of Arsenal and 4 behind Chelsea.
Things took a turn for the better in the second half of the season as Liverpool surged through the Champions League knockout stages and solidified their top-4 place in the Premier League along the way.
Manager Jurgen Klopp has managed to get the very best out of his team including the surprise performances of the front three of Salah, Firmino, and Mane. It’s easy to envisage him taking this Liverpool side to even greater echelons in the near future.
Liverpool’s transfer business
Liverpool’s transfer business has been superb of late, and this can only get better with UCL success feeding their finances. After months of rumors, Dutch centre-half Virgil Van Dijk was brought in for £75 million in the January transfer window. This was considered a hefty sum by many, but his contributions to this Liverpool side since have been nothing short of priceless.
Right off the bat, Van Dijk has transformed the Liverpool backline and completely erased their label of being a poor defending team. Without him, their UCL success likely would never have happened. They finally have their first genuine world-class centre-back in a long time.
Current RB Leipzig midfielder Naby Keita’s future has also been committed to Liverpool, and he will join the club on July 1st. Keita is renowned for being a world-class midfielder that can beat a man, create a goal, or score one himself. These 2 massive deals show Liverpool’s intent to become a domestic and European powerhouse in the coming seasons.
Really excited to see how Naby Keita and Oxlade-Chamberlain compliment each other in midfield next season.
— Ben Webb (@BenWebbLFC) May 5, 2018
Youthful (23 & 24); energetic; creative; both willing and able to drift past a man; extremely direct – and contribute goals and assists.
Potentially explosive.
Liverpool’s front 3 is another big reason for their success. Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, and Sadio Mane have a combined 56 Premier League goals this season, which is more than every team outside the top 6, and just 6 less than Chelsea.
Their front 3 will continue to get better with the addition of more quality in surrounding positions, and more depth to give them deserved rest. Throw Naby Keita into the mix, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Liverpool’s attack hit new heights next season.
Reaching the UEFA Champions League Final isn’t just rewarding to their fanbase and the current crop of players and staff. It’s rewarding for their future as well. Their appearance in the final, whether they win or lose, will generate a monumental sum of cash and interest from top-tier players to go along with it.
This means Liverpool will spend to strengthen this summer, even more than they could’ve expected. This bodes well for the club, as they also have a manager who can get the best out of anyone they bring in.
Klopp + Transfer Budget = Success
Manager Jurgen Klopp can put together a great Liverpool team with his managerial abilities and transfer budget. He has always been an overachiever. His ability to extract every drop of talent from even the most modest of players is why he is hailed as being one of the world’s best managers.
He has 32-year-old James Milner playing a crucial midfield role, 19-year-old Trent Alexander-Arnold pinging passes all over the pitch from right-back, and £8 million Andrew Robertson looking like prime Roberto Carlos down the left-flank. Even their lethal front 3 of Mane, Salah, and Firmino has hit new heights under his guidance.
In his days at Dortmund, it was the same. It’s nearly frightening to think what Klopp could do with the players they buy in the future, such as Keita. This makes them a formidable opponent in the Premier League.
Next: Joe Gomez out for the season with injury
His “heavy metal” style of play is also extremely effective against big clubs. This is the reason they managed to dispose of Manchester City quite easily in the UCL quarter-final. As they build on this style, bigger clubs will find it more and more difficult to beat them.
Depth is currently Liverpool’s main issue and is the reason they haven’t been able to sustain a title challenge over a whole season. This could change with investment and with good rotation options at their disposal. The sky is the limit at Anfield.
Their transfer business has been superb of late, and will only get more impressive as they build their financial war chest. Klopp also has the uncanny ability to get the very best out of his team. The Reds are set-up perfectly well for the future, and you can expect them to hit new heights in the coming seasons.