IIf 2024 marked the final chapter of Jurgen Klopp’s life at Liverpool, this year may be remembered as the beginning of something else special. On January 26, devastated fans learned one of football’s best-kept secrets of the modern era, one that Klopp could offer no more. In late December, a renewed team, more patient in style, far less energetic but just as powerful, was already threatening to emulate Klopp’s best achievements.
The relationship between Klopp and former players remains constant. When Curtis Jones played his 100th Premier League match against Leicester City on Boxing Day, he only knew it because his former coach congratulated him on the achievement. When Klopp returns to public life next week as head of global football for Red Bull Group, seeing him in the stands speaking to the media will take some getting used to.
The grain of separation is the achievements of the strong, vibrant team that Klopp left behind. Arne Slott has inherited a squad suffering from residual hunger, added his own qualities, smoothed out the rough edges, and is excelling so far where many other clubs have faltered in succession planning. Liverpool top the Premier League and Champions League tables.
If Slot leads Liverpool to the Premier League title, he will eclipse even Bob Paisley’s rapid revamp of Bill Shankly’s side half a century ago. Who can stop them? Manchester City may already be broken, with Arsenal and Chelsea left with little margin for error. All this while Slott only secured one major signing in the form of forgotten Italian Federico Chiesa.
Two months out from injury and now restored as slot’s No. 1 goalkeeper, Alisson admits the runaway success has come as a surprise. “I think if we looked at the start of the season at this point now and were told the numbers, how many points we have, where we are, we would sign that straight away,” says the Brazilian. “I think when Arne joined the club, everyone thought it would be difficult for him to replace a coach like Jurgen. But he is showing his qualities and bringing us a lot of good things.
Allison’s treatment is evidence of Slott’s combination of diplomacy, individual thinking and a desire to get the full benefit of his team. When Alisson stopped playing at Crystal Palace in October, Slott was happy to bring in Caoimhin Kelleher – “in almost every position we have a second option” – but he never hesitated, even when the Irishman was performing admirably. Alisson has been restored to full fitness. “I was looking forward to coming back, even because the team was doing so well, so you get more excited to be part of it,” he says.
Unlike his coach, who despite a confident exterior has repeatedly said it is too early to talk about the title, Alisson will not deny what Liverpool’s priority has become. “It’s our goal, it’s our goal,” he says. “At this stage, we can’t just start looking at points and see how things are going. We have to really focus on the next opponent in front of us. That’s the mentality we need and have at the moment. We know how the Premier League can change so quickly in two games.” “
Liverpool’s recent sense of disappointment as title contenders several times, including last season, troubles Alisson’s words. “The bad moments, I think, will teach us a lot. So, yes, we can learn a lot of lessons from last season. But we are in a different moment now as well. You can see that all the players are fully committed, everyone is fit, and we have a few players injured, but Everyone is able to play, uninjured, really fit, really good, in really good shape.
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The last time Liverpool were this good was in the only season under Klopp in which they clinched the Premier League from Manchester City, five years ago, 2019-20. Covid had already become a fait accompli by the time the lockdowns came. “I don’t think it’s very similar, [it’s] “Two different teams,” Alison says. “There are still a few players playing in the team but we have a slightly different style now, more possession, before it was really obvious: a lot of turnovers, a lot of intensity. We won the Champions League together too, the previous season.” “I think there is no comparison between the two cases.”
Instead, there is a sense of renewal, and that Klopp’s departure, which remains an issue, need not be an obstacle to future success. Change can be positive. Alisson, one of the club’s most experienced senior players, speaks freely and enthusiastically about the new Liverpool. “I want to highlight the commitment of this team, the commitment of the players, to do what the coach asks, to go every day and train hard, and have the desire to improve as well, to be a better team and the desire to win big things.” For this club.
“I think there are different players, different managers, a lot more different things than similarities. I think we don’t have to compare ourselves with teams in the past, we have to make our own history. This season, this group has to make its own history. We erase the things we did in the past that were really special and will always be in the history of this club.