Liverpool FC Season Review

Last updated : 31 May 2016 By Forzared

Cast your mind back to October, its the Merseyside Derby at Goodison Park and the sun is shining. The Everton fans are vocal and loud, a minority of Red in the away stand valiantly try to compete with the blue noise.

The game kicks off, and the pattern of play follows on from the lively atmosphere: frenetic, passionate, a typical derby game. The reds take the leads courtesy of a Danny Ings header, but it is cancelled out by a Lukaku equaliser.

At the end of the game, Brendan Rodgers steps onto the pitch and applauds the not-so-travelling Kopites; there is a signature of resignation about the manager, humble and genuine, but simultaneously melancholic, sad even. His tenure as Liverpool manager ended with the final whistle, and I think he knew it.

Fast-forward to April, another Merseyside derby, this time at Anfield. A night-time game, under the lights and this time it is the Liverpool fans who are raucous; not long on since our win over Borussia Dortmund, there is something of a triumphalism about the Reds.

The match itself is also vastly different, with Everton consigned to their own half, penalty box even, for large swathes of the duration – at some points, it seemed like the Everton goal was under constant siege. The final result: 4-0 in Liverpool’s favour.

This time, however, it is a charismatic German manager marauding the Liverpool touch line. At points in the match its like he is almost playing, at others, he is more relaxed, enjoying the game from his chair.

The reason I discuss these fixtures is because they signify a dramatic change at Liverpool: in personnel and in fortune. With over 50 games played under Jürgen Klopp’s command, it is easy to forget that the Reds began the campaign with a different leader. But, it was Brendan Rodgers who was in charge for the first part of the season. Following on from his three previous seasons as boss, there was mixed feelings concerning the Liverpool management. Some felt the previous campaign had been too disappointing, and that a fresh alternative was required. Others, like myself, were still very much in favour of Rodgers, in spite of recent disappointments.

The Northern Irishman led us into our first game of the season: a return to the Britannia Stadium, where Stoke City had beaten us 6-1 on the last day of the previous campaign. This was an important test, both in terms of kicking off the season with 3 points, and to rectify and move on from the humiliation of the 6-1 defeat.

Liverpool won 1-0, courtesy of a Coutinho screamer (a few more where in the pipeline). The next match, at home to newly-promoted Bournemouth, ended with the same result. Despite the wins, there was something of an unease at Anfield; our famous old stadium was eerily quite, dissatisfied. This unrest precipitated and boiled-over with disappointing losses against West Ham and Manchester United. The ultimate result was Rodgers leaving his post.

I, for one, was disappointed. I felt Rodgers had brought Liverpool forward considerably. I appreciate that, to quote Bill Shankly, “if you’re second, you’re nothing”, but as a Liverpool fan born in 1994, the 2013-14 season was the most exciting domestic campaign in my time following the Reds. Not just in terms of the palpable feeling that we were actually going – for once – to win the League title, but also with the football we played; it was scintillating at times. Compound this league campaign with the two semi-finals reached in Rodgers’ penultimate season, and I felt the team was in better shape than it was previous to him taking the job. I wish him the best of luck at Celtic FC.

My disappointment, however, quickly dissipated with the arrival of Klopp. In hindsight, I cannot fault the board for brining Klopp in when they did – the time was right. And what a few months it has been. Two cup finals and a lot of gegenpressing later, and I am of the opinion that Liverpool have the best manager in Europe.

The European campaign symbolised what Klopp is all about, games which will live long in the memory, characterised by energy, excitement and drama. Although being Europe’s second competition, given the opponents, this could quite easily have passed for a Champions League campaign. Klopp’s identity really started to dominate with the fixtures against Manchester United. After two disappointing results in the league against our old rivals, the Reds were determined to over-come Van Gaal’s men. The Anfield tie was fast-paced and Liverpool seemed more up for it; we took a 2-0 lead to the Theatre of Reality. After a brief upset, the tie was put to bed with a sublime Coutinho solo effort. The quarter finals were looming.

Everyone knows what happened next: Klopp was aquatinted once more with Borussia Dortmund. After a 1-1 stalemate in Germany, the sides faced up at Anfield and produced one of those famous old European nights. Lovern’s header in the dying minutes of the game is my moment of the season; I’d imagine many others would feel the same.

In the semi-finals we faced Villarreal, and it was the home fixture that really characterised the shift in mentality of Liverpool courtesy of Klopp. Outside the stadium, the fans were ubiquitous, colourful and noisy. This is Anfield, was the message. And on the pitch, the players matched the fans’ enthusiasm. A comfortable 3-0 win, the final was on the horizon.

Although the match in Basel did not go the way we had hoped, the disappointment was not as long-lived as I would have thought. Even though there were no games to come after and lift us out our slumber, the distance travelled under Klopp was evident and it became clear that the future is bright.

I felt much the same following on from our defeat at Wembley in the League Cup final. Losing on penalties was hard to take, but it was quickly made better by beating the same opponents- Manchester City – a matter of days later. A 3-0 win at Anfield meant we had beaten City 7-1 on aggregate in the two league games; City reached the semi-finals of the Champions League this season…

There were other good domestic results: beating Chelsea 3-1 at the Bridge; hammering Everton 4-0; winning 6-1 at Southampton in the League Cup and scoring 6 again at Villa Park. It was not just results that were good, however, but performances and our newly found never-say-die attitude. In the second half of the season, Liverpool scored more goals in the last 15 minutes of games than any other team. We were also the team to gain the most points from losing positions. This was not luck, rather the belief that Klopp has instilled in his players. Adam Lallana spoke of the team-talk before the League Cup final: “This will be the first of many finals together”, Klopp had said. The players believed him, and the fans do too.

Another aspect of Klopp’s character that is so amicable his is honesty, it is refreshing. Whenever we have been uncharacteristically poor (Newcastle away, Watford away, Swansea away), Klopp has not pulled any punches. He spoke honestly after these fixtures.

In terms of players, the player of the season was deserving of the accolade: Coutinho had a sublime season, adding goals and assists to his eye-catching performances. Additionally, Firmino, after a subdued start, really found his forte, teaming up brilliantly with Coutinho and with Adam Lallana. Special praise must also go to some of our defenders. Dejan Lovern has really turned his Liverpool career around, becoming a rock at the heart of the defence. Likewise, Sakho has asserted himself as a fans’ favourite – he bleeds Liverpool red. In the latter’s absence, however, Kolo Toure has been somewhat of an unsung hero for the Reds: the Ivorian was Liverpool’s best player against Sevilla in the Europa League final. James Milner was also an effective and passionate operator in the middle of the park.

Despite lots of promising results this campaign, the most important event of the season was an off-field matter. At long last, the families of the victims of The Hillsborough Disaster were rewarded with justice. Their hard-work, endeavour and spirit has been quite unbelievable and, finally, their loved ones can rest in peace. They will never walk alone.

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