Liverpool’s owners could potentially be making a huge mistake when it comes to the talks, or lack thereof, between themselves and manager Jurgen Klopp.
The German has implied that he is not under any pressure to deliver UEFA Champions League football to Anfield this season amidst the Reds’ faltering title defence.
The Reds are no longer in the race for the Premier League crown, whilst they have also been eliminated from both the FA Cup and the Carabao Cup.
Will Liverpool finish in the top four?
Yes!
No!
Should they also get eliminated from the Champions League this season, that leaves qualifying for next season’s competition as the only real target for the Merseysiders throughout the rest of 2020/21.
The last time that the club finished outside of the top four positions having previously enjoyed consecutive seasons in the Champions League was in 2010/11 and it took them a considerable amount of time to return to the competition.
It took the Reds another five seasons to get another taste of UEFA Champions League football under Brendan Rodgers, which harmed the club considerably.
Not only did their revenue take a considerable hit with the reduced amount of TV money earned by the club, which meant that they simply did not have enough funds to spend in the transfer market, their reputation also took quite a hit.
As Klopp has alluded to, this may convince potential new signings not to sign for the club without the offer of UEFA Champions League football.
It could be suggested then that failure to qualify for the competition could harm the club more than Klopp or the club’s owners realise.
Maybe FSG need to demand more of the German this season, despite him having delivered plenty of glory during his tenure?
To say that Klopp won’t be pushing to get a top-four place would be unkind to the manager’s professionalism, but a bit of extra pressure from above could provide that extra 1% of motivation that could be the difference between Champions League and Europa League football next season.
And in more news, take a look at our predicted Liverpool XI to take on Chelsea at Anfield…