Liverpool have had a pretty impressive summer transfer window and a lot of teams have taken notice of how early the Merseyside club have got their summer transfer done.
Jürgen Klopp’s side have managed two successive top-four finishes and the fans expect the club to challenge Manchester City for the league title this season. The Reds made it to the Champions League final last season but were beaten by Real Madrid.
It’s winning that matters but this Liverpool squad might have learned a thing or two from their cup runs and if that doesn’t make you a better team, I don’t know what will.
Let’s take a look at why Liverpool will challenge for the league title this season:
#3 The squad
As proven in the last few seasons, it takes a good squad a bit of luck to win the league title. Leicester City might have won the league title with a thin squad, but they more or less had their entire first team fit for the whole season and didn’t have the headache of European football to worry about.
Last season, Manchester City were impossible to stop because of the depth they had at their disposal. This time, Jürgen Klopp can perhaps boast of the same.
Also read: Strongest possible Liverpool line-up with all their summer signings
Liverpool were hamstrung last season by the absence of quality on the bench, something they have this season. There were times when the side were behind and needed some inspiration from their bench, but they could only call upon the likes of Dominic Solanke and Danny Ings.
Injuries in midfield also set them back last season as resources were stretched before the Champions League final.
For the upcoming season, Liverpool will have the presence of Naby Keita and Fabinho in midfield. Jordan Henderson, Adam Lallana, James Milner and Gini Wijnaldum will be vying for the third midfield spot; that’s some healthy competition for a place in the starting XI and a good headache for the manager to have. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s presence could have added more drive to the midfield, but he is expected to miss a majority of the season.
In attack, Daniel Sturridge is fit again and Xherdan Shaqiri’s addition will give Klopp the option to rest the Sadio Mane or Mohamed Salah when needed.
#2 Uncertainty at other clubs
Before last season began, Chelsea, Manchester United and Manchester City were tipped to challenge for the title. City ran away with it, so naturally, the other two were expected to strengthen in the on-going transfer window. That hasn’t really happened, however.
Maurizio’s Sarri’s arrival will excite the Chelsea fans, but with that comes the question as to how fast the team can adapt. Sarri’s Napoli side were a well-drilled unit and were essentially the Liverpool of the Serie A with the way they pressed and harried the opposition. At Chelsea, however, he doesn’t really have the similar players.
Jose Mourinho, on the other hand, has been moaning more than ever during pre-season. United could surprise a few, of course, because of how pragmatic Mourinho usually is, but if you compare Liverpool and United, the former seem like a more balanced outfit now. The difference was six points between Liverpool and United last season, that gap likely to be cancelled out this season.
Also read: Liverpool and formations: Impressive transfer business could allow Klopp to experiment
That leaves us with Manchester City. Liverpool showed last season that they can compete with the best and beat them, the only issue is the consistency while facing the smaller teams. If they can do that, the title will be within their reach.
#1 Klopp’s record
Jürgen Klopp wasn’t an instant success in the Bundesliga with Borussia Dortmund. During his first full season with the club, his side went unbeaten at home but they could only manage a sixth-place finish in the league.
The club achieved good progress as they finished in the Champions League spots during Klopp’s second season in charge and the following year, the lifted the Bundesliga with two games to spare.
One can find similarities with that Dortmund team and the current Liverpool side. This will be Klopp’s third full season in charge and the side are looking good.