Liverpool have defied expectations to move within an inch of the Premier League title, Champions Elect, after the ruling of the majority consigned the Reds to a fight for top four before a ball had been kicked.
How wrong we all were. Even the most optimistic Liverpool supporters will have harboured doubts after Jurgen Klopp shocked the world and stepped down from his throne after nearly nine years, Arne Slot replacing him last summer.
It’s remarkable that he’s done it without making any meaningful first-team investment, dealt with contractual problems and managed a squad bearing weaknesses across several areas.
Centre-forward Darwin Nunez’s woes have been at the forefront of the drama.
Liverpool's striker conundrum
Liverpool signed Nunez from Benfica three years ago. He was 22 at the time, giddy from a clinical season in Portugal and arriving off the back of a staggering £85m transfer fee that, with all clauses met, would make him the most expensive player in Liverpool’s history.
But it hasn’t worked out. Nunez is heading toward the end of the season, having made just eight Premier League starts under Slot’s wing, lacking the streamlined potency that the Dutch tactician seeks out.
In fact, Nunez has only scored 25 Premier League goals across his three years as a Liverpool player, playing 90 times and missing 53 big chances across the time span.
While Liverpool are expecting to break the bank and sign a new number nine this summer, it’s frustrating that Nunez was ever signed in the first place. The passion’s there but he hasn’t made it work.
You almost think that, with Diogo Jota in the mix, his signing could have been avoided altogether if Liverpool had invested more time in Dominic Solanke, who left at the start of his pro career to join Bournemouth for £19m in 2019.
Given that he’s now Tottenham Hotspur’s star striker and record signing too at £65m, Liverpool must harbour some level of regret that they didn’t keep the faith, especially given that Nunez has failed to impress.
It’s a cautionary tale, one that Liverpool might want to bear in mind as they shuffle through their summer plans. Indeed, FSG are in danger of repeating their Solanke blunder.
Liverpool's new Solanke
Liverpool are planning to bolster Slot’s squad with several new parts this summer, but exits will also be considered.
The transfer chiefs will need to ensure they get it right, though, and avoid a repeat of the one-time Solanke sale through the potential departure of Harvey Elliott.
Elliott has been on Liverpool’s books since he was 16, poached from Fulham. Now 21, the Englishman has racked up a considerable number of senior appearances for the Reds, 141, having clinched 33 goal involvements and won a host of major honours besides. He’s a super-talented young star.
And the data really does speak for itself. As per FBref, Elliott ranks among the top 1% of midfielders across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for all of goals, assists and shot-creating actions recorded per 90.
Shot-creating actions are pieces of play that lead to a shot. These include moments such as a pass, take-on or foul being drawn.
A slick passer and able ball-carrier, Elliott also ranks among the top 4% for progressive passes and the top 5% for progressive carries per 90.
Despite his limited involvement this term, the England U21 star has enjoyed some rather standout moments, further illustrating his natural prowess in attacking situations, his ability to spark something out of nothing.
That goal against Paris Saint-Germain will gather more dust than perhaps it deserves in the sprawling library of Champions League history – for Liverpool were defeated in the return leg at Anfield – but there’s no denying it was a seismic strike, his third on Europe’s elite stage this season.
Oh, if FSG and Slot were to convene and conclude that Elliott’s future is best served away from Merseyside, Liverpool would no doubt be able to bank a decent sum, as the club did with Solanke way back when.
Newcastle United are among the early contenders, report The Chronicle this month, and Liverpool have thus slapped a £40m price tag on their young playmaker.
But, looking at Solanke’s journey since, it might be a little frustrating that he wasn’t kept on the books, or perhaps loaned out across a string of seasons to foster his natural ability.
Tottenham might be in a pit of despair at the moment, but the England striker has proved himself a talented and dynamic frontman for a forsaken outfit, scoring 11 goals and providing eight assists across 31 starts in all competitions.
However, Solanke scored 21 goals across 42 matches for Bournemouth last season and is effectively playing a hopeless part for Ange Postecoglou’s Spurs.
In any case, given that he’s risen to be one of England’s top strikers who fetched a large sum last summer, Liverpool might want to think long and hard about letting Elliott leave as he’s just starting out.
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The previous two top-flight campaigns have seen the talented midfielder make real headway under Klopp, whose regrets over not playing him more were made clear when he left last year.
If Newcastle offer Liverpool £40m, it would be a financial boost but one which could definitely come back to bite the Reds down the line.
Former Liverpool U18s head coach Neil Critchley once praised Elliott for his ability to create “magic” for his side, for his teammates. Liverpool won’t want to lose that magic element as they venture into the unknown, especially since Slot’s set to lose Trent Alexander-Arnold’s creativity this summer anyway.
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