Klopp's Fading Empire: Are Liverpool's Legs Gone, Or Just the Magic?

Remember last season? Liverpool chased an unprecedented quadruple right down to the wire, eventually hoisting the FA Cup and League Cup, finishing a point behind Manchester City in the Premier League, and losing the Champions League final 1-0 to Real Madrid. They played 63 games across all competitions, a brutal schedule that stretched their squad to its absolute limit. That kind of effort takes a toll, and frankly, it looks like this season, they’re paying the bill.

Thing is, the drop-off isn't just a slight dip. This isn't a team that's just a bit off their game. Through 19 Premier League matches, the Reds sit ninth in the table with 28 points, a staggering 21 points fewer than Arsenal, who lead the league. Last season, they had 45 points at the same stage. That's a massive regression. The most recent punch to the gut came with that 2-1 loss to Brighton, a game where Roberto De Zerbi’s side outran and outfought them in every blade of grass at the Amex. Brighton had 16 shots to Liverpool's six, and the xG told a similar story: 2.37 to 0.65 in favor of the Seagulls. That's not a fluke. That’s being outplayed.

Look, you can point to injuries, sure. Virgil van Dijk has missed time, Luis Díaz has been out since October, and Diogo Jota hasn't played since mid-October either. But every team deals with injuries. The real problem is in midfield, and it's been festering for a while. Fabinho looks a shadow of his former self, often caught out of position and lacking the bite he once had. Thiago Alcântara, for all his silky passing, can't cover ground like a younger player. Naby Keïta, when he's even fit, has never truly delivered on his promise since his £52.75 million move from Leipzig in 2018. Jordan Henderson, the captain, has run himself into the ground for years and might finally be hitting the wall. The engine room is sputtering.

The stats back it up, too. Liverpool conceded just 26 goals in the Premier League last season. This year, they've already shipped 28 goals in 19 games. They're giving up more shots, more big chances, and the press isn't nearly as effective. Opponents are getting through the midfield far too easily, exposing the defense. Dejan Kulusevski and Harry Kane carved them up in a 2-1 loss to Tottenham in November. Brentford put three past them on January 2nd. Even Bournemouth, who sit in the relegation zone, managed to score twice against them in a 2-2 draw back in August. This isn't the impenetrable wall we've come to expect.

Here's the hot take: Jürgen Klopp's tactical system is so demanding, so reliant on relentless pressing and high energy, that it inherently has a shorter shelf life for squads than other approaches. You can't ask players to run that much, that hard, for multiple seasons without some serious burnout. It worked brilliantly for a few years, delivering a Champions League trophy in 2019 and the Premier League title in 2020. But the legs are gone, and the squad needed a significant refresh in the summer that simply didn't happen. Spending £64 million on Darwin Núñez was a big splash, but it didn't address the deep-seated issues in the middle of the park.

They’re a top-heavy team right now, relying on Mohamed Salah to pull a rabbit out of the hat too often. He’s got seven league goals, but it’s not enough when the rest of the team isn’t clicking. Liverpool will finish outside the top four this season, missing out on Champions League football for the first time since 2016.