Liverpool won their first domestic title in 30 years last season after such a stellar performance which saw them finish 18 points clear of second placed Manchester City.
As a result, Liverpool were declared Premier League Champions with a record-breaking seven games to spare. But, the team have not been able to match that feat this season, having slipped to fourth in the table and gone three matches without a goal after a goalless draw with Manchester United on Sunday.
Jurgen Klopp’s men for the first time in 15 years witnessed a goal drought in back-to-back fixtures against Newcastle, Southampton and United.
After the 7 – 0 thrashing of Crystal Palace in December 19, the Anfield giants have failed to record a single win in their last four games.
The game against United on Sunday seem to have further exposed the struggles in the Reds attack as their key players went missing.
Mohamed Salah was shackled comfortably by Luke Shaw, Sadio Mane’s bright start faded, while Roberto Firmino obviously came off goal shy having played for 85 minutes.
While Mane and Salah have not really been consistent this season for the Reds, one whose impact has not really been felt is the Brazilian Roberto Firmino with Diogo Jota reportedly expected to return for Liverpool next month, according to a report by The Athletic.
The lack of cutting edge in the final third has shown just how much the Portuguese is missed. The 22-year-old did show great stuff in the Liverpool squad; having scored nine times in 17 games across all competitions since joining the Reds this summer. But has been absent at Liverpool since early December with a knee injury picked up in the Champions League against FC Midtjylland.
Meanwhile, Thiago Alcantara has probably missed out on a perfect pairing in the midfield with combative Jordan Henderson, who stood as a cover for injured Joel Matip. Hence, the need for Liverpool to gun for a new centre back in the coming transfer window can not be overemphasized as Virgil Van Dijk continue to make fitness progress after months on the sidelines.
The German must now prepare his players for another crucial home fixture against Burnley on Thursday, which they can’t afford to lose with United, Manchester City and Leicester City enjoying superior spells of form above them.
Meanwhile, the 57-year-old insists he was happy with the performance as chances are still being created – they had 18 shots but only three were on target – and he is confident the goals will return.
“We have a point more than before the game,” Klopp said. “The performance was good enough to win but to win a game you have to score goals and we didn’t do that, that’s why we had that result.”
Pressed for an explanation on his goal-shy Liverpool attack, Klopp added: “There is nothing fundamentally different, just the result is different. We try and score and we try not to not score.
Also speaking about his sides chances of defending the Premier League title, the German head coach said Liverpool’s main goal is to finish in the Champions League places: “For me, it’s not important where we are in the moment – it’s important that we have points and we are around this group [top four].
“For that you need points. We are in the middle of a bunch of teams which fight for this spot and that’s what we have to do. It’s not about if we don’t become champions, it’s not fun anymore. We just fight for everything and I saw that tonight again.
“The most important thing is to qualify for the Champions League and I know how difficult it is. This season it will be a tough race for the top four.”
