It was only 16 months ago when Liverpool were seemingly facing a rather uncertain future, both on and off the pitch.
Fenway Sports Group had opened the door to a potential sale of the club in November 2022, having created a sales deck to present to potential investors, while Jurgen Klopp’s ageing squad were in decline and in a state of transition – just five months after nearly landing an unprecedented quadruple.
FSG had seemingly come to such a conclusion having grown disillusioned with their abilities to compete financially with Man City and their Abu Dhabi billions. But with 115 charges for breach of the Premier League’s financial fair play rules hanging over the Etihad, they have seemingly grown reinvigorated and are now plotting how to go bigger and better.
At the time of that initial possible sale news spreading, the Reds were eighth in the table with a seven-point gap between themselves and the top four, and a 15-point deficit to make up on the league-leaders. They were only 13 games into the season.
Come the end of the campaign they would at least recover enough to qualify for Europe and finish fifth, four points off the top four and Champions League qualification. Yet they were 22 points off champions Man City, their regular title foes who finished the campaign by winning the treble.
Evidently, something had to change. But even after an £150m midfield overhaul and launch of Klopp’s self-christened ‘Liverpool 2.0’ few could have foreseen the Reds remarkable transformation back into one of England’s leading sides.
Having already won the League Cup, they are chasing a quadruple once again. Second in the Premier League table on goal-difference alone, they travel to Manchester United for the FA Cup quarter-finals on Sunday, and already have one foot in the Europa League quarter-finals after thrashing Sparta Prague 5-1 in Czechia last week.
After initially imagining a future beyond Anfield, FSG ultimately decided against selling up and instead sought minority investment instead. New York-based sports investment firm Dynasty Equity would end up buying a small minority position in the club last September, with the move designed to clear the club’s bank debt in a deal understood to be worth between $100m and $200m.
Stability had been restored to Liverpool with supporters confident again of a bright future, in total contrast to the unfamiliar chaos their club had navigated the year before. Yet the Reds’ rebirth exceeded all expectations, leading to a bombshell announcement from Klopp in January.
After nine years at the club, the German announced he would step down as manager at the end of the season, feeling it was the right time to hand over the keys to his rapidly-impressive side. Cue further uncertainty, though Liverpool’s ongoing quadruple quest as Klopp looks to depart on a high has at least proven to be the most welcome distraction.
Of course, the Reds boss isn’t the only man departing Anfield in the summer. Assistant managers Pep Lijnders and Peter Krawietz, as well as elite development coach Vitor Matos, will also vacate their positions. Meanwhile, sporting director Jorg Schmadtke’s short-term tenure came to an end at the end of January.
Evidently, while order had been restored on the pitch, FSG still had plenty to sort off it. But now they have made a decisive first step.
