Liverpool fans should make the most of Sunday’s Wembley trip.. finals will be hard to come by in life after Jurgen Klopp
FOR everyone involved with Liverpool this is probably as good as it will get for some time — and I think they all know it.
Next season the Reds will be without Jurgen Klopp and they could be without Mo Salah and Virgil van Dijk too.
Trying to replace Salah will be like replacing three players. Meanwhile Van Dijk is not just one of the best central defenders in the world but an outstanding leader, too.
With just a year left on his contract, Van Dijk could be off and he will be almost impossible to replace.
I don’t think Liverpool will be able to tempt Xabi Alonso to Anfield either.
Alonso has a choice of Bayern Munich or Liverpool and I reckon he will choose Bayern because he will have greater financial clout there and will not face such a major rebuild.
Liverpool don’t have the money or pulling power to attract the very best in the world. Klopp wanted Jude Bellingham last summer but didn’t get him.
That kind of thing might be one reason why Klopp has decided to call it a day this season.
It must be exhausting trying to compete with Manchester City year in, year out when you don’t have the same level of finances.
It was the same for Klopp when he was Borussia Dortmund boss, trying to compete with Bayern. You can only keep trying for so long.
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Still, it feels as though Klopp’s announcement that he will be leaving at the end of the season is having a galvanising effect.
The amount of injuries they have suffered recently is phenomenal and the way they have kept winning is extraordinary.
It feels as if this is a squad of players who know this is the end of an era and are determined to squeeze every last drop out of the season.
Klopp’s side are chasing four trophies and the first one is up for grabs against Chelsea in Sunday’s Carabao Cup final at Wembley.
Ask me for a prediction and I’ll want to see the Liverpool starting line-up first.
Unless Klopp has two or three of his best players back from injury, I fancy Chelsea to sneak it.
Those injuries will be causing serious concern at Anfield. In this age of sports science, there has to be a reason for everything.
Nobody wants to believe that anything can just be a coincidence. Nobody in football wants to believe in luck — good or bad. Elite clubs employ so many people, they think that they can eradicate luck.
Klopp will be demanding answers from his medical department.
There is an ‘us against the world’ mentality at Anfield — and it is working.
He will want to know if there are any small changes in training schedules, preparation, diet, anything that might be a reason for so many players being on the treatment table.
It’s hard enough having Liverpool players in your fantasy football team at the moment, so imagine being Klopp. There is an ‘us against the world’ mentality at Anfield — and it is working.
It also helps that Liverpool’s academy is so strong and that Klopp is never afraid to blood youngsters.
Conor Bradley has really emerged in the past few weeks, while Bobby Clark looks a good player. But in a Wembley final, the Liverpool boss will not want to rely on kids.
I like Chelsea. If they add Ivan Toney up front in the summer and a commanding centre-half to replace Thiago Silva then they could be real contenders next term.
Winning the Carabao Cup would be a big step for Mauricio Pochettino as he looks to build a young team.
But every Liverpool player and supporter must suspect that Wembley finals could be very hard to come by once Klopp has gone.