Liverpool can win the Premier League title next season if they manage to swerve the same type of problem that marred their 2020/21 campaign, according to Brad Friedel.
The Reds finished last season just a point behind winners Manchester City and had Pep Guardiola's side not come from 2-0 down to defeat Aston Villa, Anfield could have collected a record-equalling 20th league title at the end of a phenomenal campaign.
Instead they will have to go again in August and with Sadio Mane departed and the arrival of Darwin Nunez, the Reds will be prepared to tackle a fresh assault. After freshening up his forward line, Jurgen Klopp will now likely turn his attention to midfield matters, but with no new arrivals expected in the engine room this summer, Friedel warns that his former club must avoid the same problem that dogged their defence two campaign ago.
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Speaking on behalf of 888sport, he said: “The Premier League title is hard to win, especially when you’re going up against a team like Manchester City who are managed by Pep Guardiola, one of the greatest managers of all time. Then you also have Chelsea, Arsenal, Tottenham and Manchester United that are incredible clubs with big, big budgets as well. Then you also have the nature of the Premier League, where you can lose to the team on the bottom on any given day – it’s the most competitive league in the world.
"So I wouldn’t say it would be a let down if Liverpool don’t win it this season but of course they will really, really want to lift that trophy. They’re so close and they’re so good. If Liverpool went through the whole season with no injuries and no suspensions in midfield then they’ll be okay. But that usually doesn’t happen.
"Now that Mane is out and Nunez is in, I think Jurgen Klopp and his staff will be focusing on midfield, that’s where they’ll be looking but it will take a special player to come in, because he will have to be better than what they have or younger with the potential of being better.
"I don’t think Jurgen Klopp will need the fans or me to tell him that. I think that’s a fair assessment of where things are. If they ensure a season like a couple of years ago where their midfield is depleted like their defence was, then it will be hard for them. Then again, the same would be true of Manchester City or Bayern Munich or Real Madrid.”
Klopp has gone head-to-head with Guardiola for the Premier League title over a number of seasons, with the former only once coming out on top, despite a couple of near misses. But Friedel believes there is little to choose between the two top coaches.
He added: “Pep and Klopp are level. They’ve both had different scenarios to deal with. Just because you have more money that doesn’t mean it’s always necessarily easier. If you purchase the wrong player with the wrong attitude and they’re on even more money, then you have more of a problem.
"I think Jurgen Klopp had a little bit more rebuilding to do, concerning the whole structure of the club. But Pep structures his team almost on a weekly basis. I think both are level and it’s similar to the Alisson/Ederson debate where you could debate for Pep or for Klopp all day long and nobody would be wrong.”
Brad Friedel was speaking on behalf of 888sport. Head to 888sport for the latest Premier League odds.
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