Jürgen Klopp has departed Anfield and Merseyside in general, ready to take on his next adventure. For many Liverpool supporters, that feels entirely alien, given the fact that the German had been in position for nearly a decade. It is all change for the Reds, with Arne Slot coming in to replace him.
He is the man that the number crunchers who brought us the likes of Mo Salah and Sadio Mané believe will be able to carry on from where Klopp left off, even if many feel that he still has plenty to prove to people that went from doubters to believers and are now back being doubters again. The question is, what’s a realistic aim for him?
The big question that the vast majority of supporters will be asking themselves before a ball has even been kicked is what are the Premier League odds for Liverpool for the 2024-2025 season? Answering that question is nigh on impossible, given we don’t really know who Arne Slot is going to select in his first eleven, let alone how they’re going to play under him.
The Dutchman is likely to stick with a spine of Alisson Becker, Virgil van Dijk, Alexis Mac Allister and Mohamed Salah, but after that it really is anyone’s guess. One imagines that players such as Cody Gakpo and Ryan Gravenberch will get a chance thanks to their Dutch connection.
Beyond that, though, there are so many unanswered questions. Is Trent Alexander-Arnold going to be a midfielder? Or a Real Madrid player? Will Darwin Núñez be able to replicate his form for Uruguay in a Red shirt, or continue to be a mystery wrapped inside an enigma?
Add into all of that the fact that we haven’t got a clue how Arsenal are going to react to missing out on the title for two years running and there is no clear indication of whether or not Manchester City will face repercussions for any of the 115 charges they face and you can see why it is that not many people are willing to put go out on a limb for Liverpool as title favourites.
Ultimately, though, the Reds stand a decent enough chance of enjoying some success in the Premier League. They looked as though they might have been able to win it last season, only for the emotion of Jürgen Klopp’s departure and the numerous injuries suffered by important players catching up with them as the campaign drew to a close.
Arne Slot proved in the Netherlands that he is a clever manager who knows how to get the best out of his players. Whilst it is unlikely that he’ll be able to win the title at the first time of asking, there are certainly question marks around Manchester City and Arsenal for various reason that might work in his favour.
If the Reds aren’t exactly nailed on favourites for the title, perhaps a cup run might be in store for Arne Slot’s first season. The Dutch manager took his Feyenoord side to the final of the Europa Conference League in his first season at the club and won the KNVB Cup in his last one there, so it isn’t as if he doesn’t have any experience of trying to win the big shiny things.
Ok, the Champions League is an entirely different breed to the competition that is effectively two runs below it in the European pecking order, but there is one thing in his favour for this coming season: no one has yet led a team to victory under the new system for the tournament.
Yes, he has struggled to get his term performing well in European competition, but the way the Champions League will work in the 2024-2025 season is entirely different to what anyone has experienced before. If we can make it out of the initial stage into the knockout phase then it might well be anyone’s, given the likelihood of some big-name teams not qualifying.
If the Champions League proves a step too far for him then it might be that one of the domestic cups proves a decent route to silverware. He will want to get to know his squad during the season, with Liverpool’s deep enough to provide him with a good shot at success, having won both cups themselves in the past few seasons.
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