Liverpool: Is Jurgen Klopp’s best days at Anfield behind him?
By Varun Aithal
Jurgen Klopp is feeling the pain and the heat in the Anfield seat. Another loss suffered in their Premier League defending campaign.
The Liverpool faithful had a bitter-sweet Sunday. One of their legendary players, Steve Gerrard, halted Celtic’s dominance for the first time in ten years by winning the Scottish Premiership with Rangers.
On the other hand, Jurgen Klopp lost his sixth consecutive Anfield game. With the form they are in, the club looks set to finish in the top-four.
At Anfield, Klopp has done wonders for the Merseysiders. Not only has he resurrected the struggling Reds but also made them the Champions of Europe by clinching UEFA Champions League in the 2018/19 season.
In the campaign that followed, with minimal spending, Klopp led his team to their first Premier League title in 30 years. Since then the club has failed to repeat that winning form and have struggled to meet the requirements of being a proper defending team.
How far out of reach are Liverpool from making the top four?
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After 28 games, the Anfield outfit finds themselves eighth in the standings with 43 points to their name. They are really close to ninth and tenth place, seven points off a Champions League spot.
Ninth-placed Aston Villa has 40 points with two games in hand while fourth-placed Chelsea have 50 points with no game in hand.
Since the change of year, Liverpool have scored 10 goals and conceded 16. They have lost six home games along with losing to Southampton and Leicester City on the road.
Jurgen Klopp’s high-intensity football is slowly falling apart and the final day spending to add center-backs hasn’t helped their cause.
Multiple issues at the same time have affected the Merseysiders’ this season
The new addition of Thiago Alcantara has failed to produce anything magical at Anfield. Injury to their prominent defender Virgil van Dijk and poor performances from the front three, Mane, Firmino and Salah has increased Jurgen Klopp’s headache.
Previous managers of Liverpool weren’t given a long rope after their dismal run in the top-flight. Brendan Rodgers, Klopp’s predecessor at Anfield, was dismissed after the club recorded a poor run of games.
The current Leicester City manager was sacked after the Reds won just three games out of eight in the 15/16 season – before hiring the German in October of 2015. Rodgers had five points from his last three games including a victory against Aston Villa.
Sir Kenny Dalglish, manager of the Merseysiders prior to Rodgers met the same fate. Liverpool finished eighth under Sir Kenny Dalglish after the club endured a horrendous run in the last eight games.
The Anfield outfit lost four, won three and drew against Aston Villa, missing out on European qualification. Compared to the other managers mentioned here, Jurgen Klopp has been given an extended time frame by FSG to save his job.
Prediction of who will finish in the top four. light. Related Story
With Steve Gerrard making a strong case for himself by winning the Scottish title, there is a lot of pressure on the German to turn the corner. It will be interesting to see how Klopp responds to Liverpool’s poor form.