Liverpool fans had been desperately waiting for the final Sunday in the Premier League season of 2021/22 to roll around, knowing full well that Jurgen Klopp’s first team squad had managed to take a potentially historic shot at a quadruple right down to the final game of the year.
Unfortunately, the stars did not align in the way tens of thousands of supporters had hoped and our 3-1 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers counted for nothing as Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City side staged a very late and frustrating fightback from two goals down to take victory over Aston Villa – gifting them that single point they needed to stay ahead of us in the race for the title.
Despite all the disappointment, Klopp has plenty of reasons to be proud of the players given their efforts throughout the campaign, particularly as we took the battle down to the final ten minutes to create an end of season emotional rollercoaster that would have had fans of all colours gripped to their screens.
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The runners up spot was not what anyone wanted, but it can be celebrated, as should Mohamed Salah’s success in sharing the Golden Boot (his 3rd award) after scoring 23 times this season, as well as picking up the newest end of season award, the Premier League’s Playmaker of the Season gong after he chipped in with 13 assists in the league. Plenty will feel that he’s deserving of the break, but there will be others who wished he was off to Qatar for the next World Cup.
Goalkeeper Alisson was also recognised as he also shared the Golden Glove (his 2nd award) with 20 clean sheets to his name.
Whilst the historic quadruple is now out of reach, the treble is our next aim given Liverpool still have to close the season out properly by facing Real Madrid in next weekend’s Champions League Final.
Few will disagree with our German gaffer’s words following the game as he paid tribute to the players and their efforts across the season.
“The boys have played an incredible season. The whole journey, it’s absolutely exceptional. The game today said so much about these boys. We conceded an early goal, which gave us a knock. We didn’t play football like we usually play. We had to take Thiago off early. And then you still find a way, it’s outstanding. Ninety-two points is crazy. It’s the story of my life. I’m the record holder for not getting promoted from the German second division with the highest points tally, first division points tally as well. You have to get all the points.”
The 2022/23 Premier League campaign is set to be another intriguing one with sides strengthening again over the summer and there is also the small matter of dealing with the winter break for the World Cup out in Qatar. That in itself could prove to be very telling when it comes to the final destination of the next set of trophies as that disruption could be a massive problem for some clubs to deal with.
It should ensure the next campaign goes off without a dull moment and fans will just have to enjoy the ride like normal.
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