Pundit outlines key reasons behind Liverpool Premier League title ‘failure’
Garth Crooks has outlined the reasons why he believes Liverpool failed to win the 2023/24 Premier League title.
The Reds were involved in a three-way battle alongside Manchester City and Arsenal and even topped the table for 12 of 15 weeks between matchdays 16 and 31.
After winning the EFL Cup in February it looked like Liverpool could win a quadruple. However, a run of just three wins from their final eight league games saw them drop out of the title race to finish third behind Arsenal and eventual winners City.
Liverpool exited the FA Cup with a defeat to Manchester United in March, before they also crashed out of the Europa League with a 3-1 aggregate loss to Atalanta in the quarter-finals in April, meaning they had to settle for only one trophy.
Klopp announcement to blame for Liverpool’s title ‘failure’?
Liverpool’s dip came after manager Jurgen Klopp had already announced his decision to step down at the end of the season back in January.
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— Liverpool FC (@LFC) May 19, 2024
Explaining his selection of Virgil van Dijk in his BBC Team of the Season, Crooks stated his belief that Klopp’s announcement was a ‘factor’ in Liverpool’s ‘failure’ to win the title, alongside losing experienced leaders such as Jordan Henderson and James Milner in the summer.
“To have selected only one Liverpool player for my team says it all really,” wrote Crooks. “Liverpool have not only let the title slip from their grasp, they have shown signs that the pressure was starting to get to them.
“The departure of James Milner and Jordan Henderson cannot be quantified, but it was left to Virgil van Dijk to hold it all together. Gone are the days when the team used to pick itself. Neither can we be sure what impact the timing of Jurgen Klopp’s announcement, that he was leaving Anfield at the end of the season, had on the players.
“All of these were factors of Liverpool’s title failure, but they are back in the Champions League – and who can forget that heroic performance by Van Dijk in the League Cup final against Chelsea?”
Liverpool beat Wolves 2-0 at Anfield in Klopp’s final game in charge, with the club now preparing for life under Arne Slot, who will join from Dutch giants Feyenoord this summer.
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