It’s been a summer of slight change for Liverpool as the Reds bid goodbye to long-time forward Sadio Mane while also bringing in Darwin Nunez from Benfica and extending Mohamed Salah to a bumper new contract to stay at the club.
2021/22 season: 2nd position | 2nd most goals scored | Fewest goals conceded
Liverpool were just a whisker away from creating history in the 2021/22 season, with the Reds falling just short of winning the unheralded quadruple. The Reds got to the final of all three cup competitions, beating Chelsea in both domestic cups via penalties before losing to Real Madrid in the Champions League final once again in Paris. In the league, Liverpool kept Manchester City honest throughout the season, but once again, it was just a solitary point that cost the Reds the title, with the Cityzens dramatically sealing the title on the final day.
Incomings
1. Darwin Nunez – £67.5 million (Benfica)
2. Calvin Ramsay – £4.4 million (Ajax)
3. Fabio Carvalho – £5.3 million (Fulham)
Outgoings
1. Sadio Mane – £28.8 million (Bayern Munich)
2. Takumi Minamino – £13.5 million (AS Monaco)
3. Neco Williams – £18 million (Nottingham Forest)
4. Marko Grujic – £8 million (Porto)
Despite shelling out close to £70 million on the transfer fee for Darwin Nunez, Liverpool have effectively broken even in the transfer market this summer as they remain one of the top selling teams in football. The biggest sale was that of long-standing servant Sadio Mane to Bayern Munich, with the Senegalese moving on from Liverpool with just one year remaining on his contract after receiving a more attractive offer from the Bavarian giants.
The Reds have also made two brilliant bargain buys that suit their squad to a tee in Calvin Ramsay and Fabio Carvalho. The Scottish full-back acts as the perfect backup to Trent Alexander-Arnold, while the Portuguese wonderkid can play in a variety of positions in midfield and attack.
Staring XI – BOLD
Players in red are likely to leave this summer
Alisson – Best 1v1 keeper in the world, also elite at other stuff
Kelleher – Should be number one elsewhere in Europe
TAA – Most revolutionary player in English football in the last decade
Calvin Ramsay – Basically Trent-lite
Joel Matip – Excellent ball carrier and passer but can’t block shots or defend in open space
Ibrahima Konate – Physical monster, should be VVD’s partner to start this season
Virgil van Dijk – Hasn’t touched pre-ACL injury peak but is still the best CB in the world
Andrew Robertson – Incredible engine and excellent in both 1v1s
Konstantinos Tsimikas – He would start at LB for 15 other teams in the league
Fabinho – Valuable disruptor and monster shot but needs to stay injury free for Liverpool to challenge
Thiago – Passing metronome, ceiling raiser, the football equivalent of *chefs kiss*
Jordan Henderson – True leader and dressing room presence, but the physical decline was evident last season
James Milner – Same as above^
Naby Keita – Showed what he can do without injuries last season, should be approaching his prime this year
Harvey Eliott – Gruesome ankle injury derailed last season but can become starting RCM this year
Alex Oxlade Chamberlain – No athleticism left in his body at 28. Is his career already over?
Roberto Firmino – Liverpool missed him in pivotal moments last season against the top teams
Diogo Jota – Arguably the best header in the PL, but doesn’t offer the same threat at left-wing
Darwin Nunez – Monster player, but his adaptation to the PL will define Liverpool’s season
Mohamed Salah – Goal-scoring machine, best RW in world football
Luis Diaz – Dynamic winger with tremendous running power and goal-scoring, not sure about playmaking though
Liverpool have been extraordinarily unlucky in the Premier League over the past couple of years, with Jurgen Klopp’s men missing out on the title by a solitary point twice in the last four seasons. Despite falling short in the league and Champions League final, the Reds were extraordinary in the second half of the season, with their final league defeat coming against Leicester City on matchday 20 in December.
Liverpool lost just two of their last 35 games in all competitions last year, maintaining an unbelievably high standard after the arrival of Luis Diaz from Porto. However, the Reds will be weaker to start this season following the departure of Sadio Mane to Bayern Munich. For all the Senegalese’s troubles last year, Mane scored 16 goals in the league and offers significantly more in possession than Diaz and Nunez.
Another worry for Klopp and Liverpool will be the ageing core in midfield. Henderson and Milner are on the wrong side of 30, Keita and Thiago have shown some injury concerns, while the depth behind Fabinho is concerningly thin. None of these are catastrophic issues that will derail the season. But in a league with razor-thin margins, while the chasing pack of Tottenham, Arsenal, United and Chelsea continue to improve, there isn’t any room for error at Liverpool in the Premier League.
Predicted finish: 2nd
[Featured Image Credit: Liverpool]
Shivaan Shah