Had anyone approached you at the beginning of the season and suggested that any Premier League table could achieve a quadruple, an unprecedented feat, to say the least, you probably would have considered the idea preposterous.
Now, in mid-March, it does look a whole lot more plausible. The team in question? Well, clearly, as the winners of the only piece of major silverware in England thus far in the shape of the EFL Cup, it’s Liverpool we are talking about.
The odds on Jurgen Klopp achieving such an accomplishment when the season started would have been astronomical; indeed, you’d be better off trying your hand at the best UK slots over such a bet. However, now it’s not looking quite so ridiculous.
As well as winning eight on the bounce in the Premier League, and in doing so, cutting the gap to leaders Manchester City considerably, they’ve also been slaying all before them in terms of their Champions League efforts. A vital away win at the San Siro was all the difference last month, and they now sit comfortably in the quarter-finals of the competition, and any side that draws them in the next round will undeniably have a fight on their hands.
As far as the FA Cup is concerned
Home wins over Shrewsbury Town, Cardiff City, and Norwich City have led them to a Quarter-Final tie with Nottingham Forest, who have already taken the scalps of Leicester City and Arsenal, but Klopp should be able to ease past that potential banana skin.
Arguably the biggest obstacle now comes in the form of Liverpool’s away trip to the Etihad Stadium when they face City on the 10th of April in what is a game they can not afford to lose, and a win would put them in pole position to take the championship.
It’s worth remembering that Klopp only brought in one player over the summer and only one addition in January, but nonetheless has a squad brimming full of talent, meaning that fighting on multiple fronts isn’t an issue.
Klopp can call upon international level back-ups whenever necessary, and thus far, no one has been found wanting. One only has to look at how the goals have been shared around this season to see how much depth is available to the German manager.
Liverpool has already racked up 111 goals in all competitions, and no less than 19 different players have got on the score sheet. Diogo Jota has been a revelation, and new addition Luis Diaz has shown he is more than capable of pushing into the starting eleven.
In midfield, there is an embarrassment of riches for Klopp to make up his middle three, and Joel Matip has excelled as the first-choice partner for Virgil van Dijk in the center of the Liverpool defense.
Final verdict
As you would have expected, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson have been as effective on the back foot as they have been providing ammunition for the front men; all in all, Klopp’s side is settled and well and truly chomping at the bit to topple Man City and any team they draw in cup competitions and what may have been unthinkable in early August is now not as much of a longshot as one might have anticipated.
