Naby Keita is Showing Exactly Why Klopp Waited so Patiently for Him
Jurgen Klopp's first game in charge back in October 2015 saw Adam Bogdan, Kolo Toure, Connor Randall, Joao Texeira, Joe Allen, Jerome Sinclair and Jordon Ibe feature on the bench - none of whom are still at the club.
In contrast, the bench against West Ham on the opening game of the 2018/19 Premier League season contained Fabinho, Henderson, Lallana, Shaqiri and Sturridge - five players capable of changing the outcome of the contest.
Key to such a strenuous rebuild …
Brilliant (but not enough) signings leave LFC riding on luck in title charge
Liverpool’s aggressive and early dealings left many, not least usually sceptical fans impressed. For so long “monitoring of targets” and “staying in conversations for top players” defined the club’s dealings in the transfer market. The swiftness and efficiency that characterised the summer was therefore received with a welter of joy and shock. In Alisson, Fabinho, Naby Keita and Shaqiri, the club’s decisiveness in dealing with some key weaknesses in the squad was been self-evident.
However, with Liverpool, there is always …
Why this is a defining season for Jürgen Klopp
On the dawn of Liverpool's 2018/19 Premier League campaign, excitement could not be more palpable.
A solid season last year with some exquisite performances saw Reds fans treated to some fine displays which led them all the way to the Champions League final and to a second consecutive fourth-place finish in the league.
Last season's final in Kiev was Klopp's third major final since he took charge of Liverpool back in October 2015, but his side are yet to win …
Time For Gini Wijnaldum To Be Unleashed
Remember the player we all thought we were getting when Gini Wijnaldum signed for Liverpool two years ago?
It was a transfer that came out of left field, with the Dutchman rarely linked with a move before becoming the seventh permanent signing of Jurgen Klopp's reign.
Wijnaldum had blown hot and cold at Newcastle United, with some Magpies fans critical of his limp, almost disinterested performances away from St James' Park, but his attacking quality was undeniable.
During the one …
Crunching the Numbers for Liverpool's Fast Start
Fellow Anfield Index writer Olli Emmerson recently wrote an article on what Liverpool must do to win the league. He crunched the numbers, looking at previous league winners and their points tallies alongside goals scored, goals conceded and the results from the opening ten games.
Further to that, I decided to delve into Liverpool's fixtures, compute the average points we achieved against each opposition and thus determine whether the Reds can make the kind of fast start prior Premier League …
Why We're Thinking About Injuries All Wrong
The season is yet to kick off, but the bodies are already piling up in Liverpool's treatment room.
Joel Matip, having just returned from an injury which required surgery, is back on the sidelines, whilst Adam Lallana, who started a single league fixture in 2017/18, is also injured, after making his way through the first few weeks of pre-season. Ragnar Klavan, with a hamstring issue, joins the injury roster and Oxlade-Chamberlain - a player who struggled with injuries during his …
Is Michael Edwards as Important to LFC as Jurgen Klopp?
When Michael Edwards first came to the front of most Liverpool’s fans' minds was the summer of 2017, when Edwards’ tenure as Sporting Director exploded into life with the signing of Mo Salah, the first of many extraordinary signings that Edwards has secured as Liverpool’s chief transfer man.
But of course, Edwards has been in the picture longer than that. He was announced as Sporting Director in November 2016 and played a pivotal role in the signing of Sadio Mané …
Why Virgil van Dijk Is Liverpool's Most Important Player
Such is the level of quality within Liverpool's newly-built squad, there are various players that could lay claim to being the Reds' most important individual heading into 2018/19.
Mo Salah is the obvious name that immediately springs to mind, considering the Egyptian's 44 goals last season catapulted him to superstar status.
Without his devastating impact in the final third, Liverpool would suddenly cut a far less potent force.
The subtle magic of Roberto Firmino also makes him one of the …
The Rejuvenated Role of Daniel Sturridge
‘It’s only pre-season. It’s only pre-season.’
That’s what the two Manchester City and Manchester United were left clamouring about, desperately trying to save face after Liverpool brushed them aside with 2-1 and 4-1 wins respectively.
Indeed, the US tour has been a success, with one of the keys to the promising form being a player perceived by many to be surplus to requirements at Anfield.
Daniel Sturridge’s departure from the club appeared to have been in the works some time …
Liverpool and the Meaningless Friendlies
Many years ago in the days when he was a footballer rather than a TV host and the online taunter of phone hackers, Gary Lineker belittled the idea of a glorious pre-season goal.
His view was that, given a finite number of goals in any striker’s career, you want your thirty yard volley to be in a vital match - maybe a semi-final or in injury time in a final. You don’t want it against Alfreton Town’s youth team in …