The State of Liverpool: An Overview of the Club's Prospects as Football Takes a Break

Right then, football is on an enforced (and very necessary) break and everyone is in lockdown. 

​What better time to sit back and take stock (not toilet roll...) of what has been a tornado of a season.

Let's take a look at it all - how it's gone, how it could go when it all starts up again, and what the long-term future might hold now for ​Liverpool Football Club.

As it Stands

The pre-break blip in form was perhaps inevitable, after a year of near-perfection that could never been maintained indefinitely. While it was undoubtedly disappointing to exit the Champions League and FA Cup before football went on hiatus, few - if any - Liverpool fans would've prioritised those competitions over league success at the start of the season.

Defeat to Watford ended the chance at invincibility but the Reds have still won 27 out of 29 this season, a truly obscene return and were two wins from their first top-flight title since 1990 before the coronavirus outbreak put everything on ice.

It's hard to imagine that Liverpool wouldn't have confirmed their title win in record time (with more than five games to spare) and possibly with a new record points total (>100) too.

Mohamed Salah (16 goals, and five in his last six outings) was also in the running for the Premier League Golden Boot for a third consecutive season - a feat only ever achieved by greats Thierry Henry and Alan Shearer.

Trent Alexander-Arnold is/was also a near shoo-in for Young Player of the Year, after already equalling his own assists record for a defender (12).

Will any of this matter? Will individuals or the team eventually get medals for their season? [insert shrug emoji]. 

The latest talk is that the Premier League are keen to resume play, with the goal of ​finishing the calendar by the end of June, pandemic permitting. There is ​huge money at stake for the Premier League intensifying their desire to make sure the campaign is completed, one way or another.

Can it be done realistically, though? [another shrug emoji] 

Injury Status & Potential Returns

Alisson Becker - what a difference he might've made in the Champions League exit to Atletico Madrid, eh? - was Liverpool's only notable first-team absentee prior to the break.

The Brazilian keeper was expected to return to fitness by early April, meaning he will be back for when the season is restarted - if it is restarted.

Other than that Xherdan Shaqiri and Nathaniel Clyne remain more long-term issues, but their presences are (at best) incidental to Liverpool's on-field fortunes.

If you really want to try to find a silver lining in this mushroom cloud of a situation, it might be that some of Liverpool's key stars (particularly Fabinho, Sadio Mane and Andy Robertson among others) could've used some R&R from an incredibly busy and high-pressure season.

Remaining Fixtures & Season Projection

Let's be honest, there's not much chance that the Premier League will return in early April as is the current plan - even behind closed doors.

If and when it does recommence, Liverpool will have nine games remaining, while two more wins (or a favourable result against City before that) would seal the title.

Their remaining league games are listed below. We'll throw in a result prediction and a projection on how they'll do for fun, too. 

Total Points Projection: 99

Predicted Finish: 1st

Whether or not Liverpool win/would've won the title is not in much doubt, it's just a case of when and by how much.

City - in strong form prior to the break - would be up for the Reds' visit to the Etihad, determined not to concede the title on home soil.

Other than that, Liverpool's ability to keep churning out wins (beautiful or ugly) would determine if they set that new record points total of >100. 

Away trips to Everton, Arsenal and relegation-battling Brighton are probably the biggest obstacles to that goal.

A pessimist will say it's just beyond reach based on recent form, an optimist will disagree. A realist will add that the season may not be finished at all.

Player Contract Status 

The Reds have three players out of contract come 30 June. They are: Adam Lallana, Nathaniel Clyne and fourth-choice keeper Andy Lonergan. 

Lallana - though apparently long-decided that he would leave this summer - has been a useful sub option this season, playing in 15 Premier League games.

Both he and Clyne played in Klopp first-ever game as Liverpool manager back in 2015. Once they are gone, only James Milner and Divock Origi will remain from that lineup against Tottenham.

There has been ​talk that Lallana could be offered a new short-term deal, should the season be extended into the summer. Quite how that would work is anyone's guess.

Summer Transfer Plans

Liverpool's summer is not expected to be an especially busy one, with their already very strong first-team squad requiring only the odd touch-up with botox rather than a full facelift.

A source has told 90min that, specifically, the Reds could look to sign a young centre back to act as fourth choice, with Dejan Lovren open to leaving. In addition, a central midfielder (to cover for the departure of soon-to-be free agent Lallana) will be sought, while Andy Robertson may require a specialist deputy at left back.

Promising youngsters Neco Williams, Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliot could all see more game time next season. 

Liverpool's strategy remains to buy smart and only in areas that will actually improve the squad, rather than buying big for the sake of getting in a star name. Being Premier League champions, European champions or even a part of the Nike family won't change that plan. So, basically: no Mbappe.

That said, RB Leipzig hotshot Timo Werner has been consistently linked for some time and seems pretty desperate for a big move this summer. A £50m transfer would provide Liverpool with both an exciting, alternative dimension in attack and cover for the expected losses of Mohamed Salah/Sadio Mane for next year's Africa Cup of Nations. For those reasons, it may just get sign-off as 'smart' business.

Read more about ​Liverpool's summer transfer plans here.

Long-Term Targets

Win the Premier League. If not this season, then next. That remains the goal.

As bitterly disappointing as it would be to miss out on the title for non-footballing reasons, it doesn't change much about the state that Liverpool are in currently. Quite possibly no other club in world football has an all-round better set-up from board level, to recruitment to coaching to squad right now.

Liverpool need to maintain the high levels they've cultivated other the last few years under Klopp and FSG and they will continue to challenge for and win trophies, whenever football comes back.

Stay safe, everyone!

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