The summer has flown and it seems like only a few weeks ago we were finishing off the 2022/23 season with an 11-game unbeaten run. Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough to secure Champions League football this season, so the Reds will have to settle for the Europa League.
Outgoings have been numerous over the summer. We all knew that Naby Keita, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and James Milner would be leaving, but few of us could predict Jordan Henderson and Fabinho going to Saudi Arabia. That’s left a huge hole in the middle of the field and, despite the arrivals of Alex Mac Allister from Brighton and Dominik Szoboszlai from RB Leipzig, there is still an urgent need for a defensive midfielder.
It’s no secret that Jurgen Klopp has been trying to bring in Romeo Lavia from Southampton, but the newly-relegated club aren’t playing ball and holding out for a £100m offer which may well not happen.
Trent Alexander-Arnold looks like he will revert to his familiar right-back position for the start of the new season, so we could see Curtis Jones tasked with that midfield role until we can hopefully bring someone in before the transfer window closes. If we don’t then it’s going to be a tough first-half to the season.
The defence is going to have to hit the ground running and be a lot more stable and strong than we were through the course of last season. Avoiding injuries to the first-choice central defenders will be key, once again.
Finally on a positive note, the attacking line-up have been looking sharp in pre-season. Mo Salah, Darwin Nunez, Cody Gakpo, Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz have all been finding their scoring boots and it bodes well for the front line.
That leads me to the customary and rather awkward predictions…
Premier League: 4th
Europa League: Final
FA Cup: Semi-final
League Cup: Early knock-out
