It’s been a curious year for Liverpool. On one hand, 2022 has seen three pieces of silverware, with Jordan Henderson hoisting the League Cup, FA Cup and Community Shield trophies into the air. On the other hand, Jürgen Klopp missed out on the Premier League and Champions League in cruel fashion, and has since had to contend with major struggles at the start of the current campaign.
But more than ever, the new year represents a clean slate. Premier League action has been paused to accommodate the World Cup, and Liverpool will return with genuine belief that they can still make something special out of this season.
Last year, we listed Harvey Elliott’s return, the prospect of lifting multiple trophies and a potentially big FSG outlay as things to look forward to. That all came to fruition, to a greater or lesser extent — Liverpool are still waiting on the big midfield spend, but they have added both Luis Díaz and Darwin Núñez to the ranks in 2022, breaking the club transfer record in the process.
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Trophies may be harder to come by in 2023, although Liverpool remain in the hunt for plenty. But on top of silverware, there is plenty to anticipate eagerly as Klopp embarks upon his ninth calendar year at the club.
More Champions League nights
Another year, another round of Champions League knockout football at Anfield under the lights. Liverpool face the tantalising prospect of a rematch of last year’s final, but this time over two legs, with Real Madrid required to come and face the full force of a fearsome home crowd.
The first leg will be played at Anfield on February 21, before Liverpool travel to the Spanish capital on March 15. Klopp would no doubt have preferred this the other way around, in the manner of the incredible Barcelona comeback in 2019, but the chance to build up an advantage in front of home support should not be underestimated either. Not every tie has a Divock Origi to turn the tide.
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One thing that’s guaranteed is that both legs will be incredible occasions. While the draw was not kind to Liverpool in one sense, these are ultimately the kinds of games for which supporters live. Massive European clashes against the top teams were absent from Anfield for far too long, and they should be cherished whenever they come around: 2023 is no exception.
Meanwhile, Liverpool will be preoccupied with the task of ensuring their immaculate recent record of appearing in the latter stages of the Champions League continues into 2024. Their qualification for next season’s iteration of the tournament is very much in the balance, with Klopp’s side currently seven points off the pace.
The manager will rightly back his players to turn things around and secure qualification. Since he first guided Liverpool back to the Champions League in 2017/18, they have qualified via their league finish in five further consecutive campaigns. But winning this season’s final, back in Istanbul for the first time since 2005, isn’t a bad back-up plan.
Double injury comeback
Liverpool fans were hoping that they would get to see Díaz again in 2022. But after a setback to his recovery in Dubai, Klopp is now set to be without the Colombian until well into the new year.
There’s no official timescale on his return yet. There is a clearer picture around Diogo Jota, who is expected to be back in February (The Athletic). But between those two absences, there is no doubt that Liverpool are in for a couple of months of pain.
On the other hand, it means that at some point in 2023 — whenever it may be — they will receive a massive double boost. Díaz was instrumental in helping his new club to two trophies after joining at the start of the year, and was the only outfielder in the running for Liverpool’s player of the season crown before his untimely injury against Arsenal. As for Jota, he is a goal-scoring menace, one who gives Klopp precious options across the front line.
Both injury comebacks will fulfil the old cliché: they will be like new signings. Coupled with some expected actual transfer activity, Liverpool can look forward to a major rejuvenation in the not-too-distant future — one that could fire them towards a title tilt in 2023/24, as well as potentially salvaging something special from the current campaign. If that something involves Istanbul, all the better.
Jude Bellingham?
Naturally, the most hotly-anticipated piece of transfer business is the potential arrival of Jude Bellingham, and even if that doesn't come off, there will be another exciting deal in his place.
Liverpool are regarded as the frontrunners for Bellingham (The Athletic), even if other teams still sense an opportunity to muscle in. Klopp will not be counting any chickens, with Bellingham undoubtedly the hottest property on the planet right now, but a coup does not look as sensational as it once appeared.
This would make 2023 a year to remember for Liverpool regardless of what happens on the pitch. The incredible thing about Bellingham is that he is so good at such a young age — whoever gets him will be getting a world-beater for the next decade and beyond.
Whisper it, but it’s probably the closest Liverpool could get to signing a young Steven Gerrard. Bellingham has the talent and mentality to win games on his own, while also knowing how to operate as an effective cog within a team, and is the ideal candidate to lead a new generation to success.
His performances at the World Cup have done nothing to bring the price down; nor have the glowing reports from all of his international colleagues. But Jordan Henderson and Trent Alexander-Arnold stuck particularly close to Bellingham during Qatar: 2023 could yet be the year they begin to see far more of one another.
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December 26, 2022
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