Liverpool officially secured the Premier League title after establishing a significant lead at the top of the table. This impressive achievement was cemented following a 5-1 victory against Tottenham Hotspur, marking a successful completion to their first season under manager Arne Slot.
In the final months of their title-winning campaign, Liverpool entered a period of comfortable control. They navigated the occasional challenge thanks to the unassailable lead they had built during the early part of the season. While this might have resulted in a somewhat anticlimactic conclusion to the Premier League title race, their initial surge to the top was far from predictable at the season`s outset.
It was uncertain how smoothly Liverpool would transition from the Jurgen Klopp era, a period spanning nearly nine years that revitalized the club with successes including a Premier League title, a UEFA Champions League trophy, and two more appearances in the final of Europe`s premier club competition. However, Slot wasted no time settling in at Anfield, experiencing just one defeat across all competitions until early January. The Dutch manager, whose prior coaching career was solely in the Netherlands, subtly shifted Klopp`s characteristic attack-first approach towards a team with more tactical restraint, yet achieving equally effective results when at their peak. Their exceptional start provided enough margin to withstand some mid-season difficulties, ensuring they would not end the season without silverware, despite exiting the FA Cup and UEFA Champions League and losing the EFL Cup final within a few winter weeks.
As celebrations begin in Liverpool, let`s review the key trends that provide context for the Reds` title triumph and guaranteed Slot`s inaugural season at Anfield would be a success.
Mohamed Salah`s Phenomenal Form
Liverpool`s dominant title run contained an element of surprise because it initially felt like a year of transition. With limited transfer activity last summer, Slot was largely working with a squad designed for Klopp, potentially delaying his ability to fully implement his vision. This sense of transition was compounded by uncertainty surrounding veteran leaders Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk, both in the final year of their contracts, raising the realistic possibility of their imminent departure.
However, the nature of transitions is that the exact point where one era ends and another begins is difficult to foresee. Liverpool`s belief that Salah still had a stellar season left in him proved ultimately correct. Perhaps the most memorable aspect of their title win is that it served as the stage for arguably the greatest six months of Salah`s already remarkable career. During this period, the 32-year-old found the net with impressive ease. His statistics for the season stand at 33 goals and 33 assists across all competitions, with the majority of these contributions coming between August and February. His form closely mirrored Liverpool`s; their dip in the spring coincided with his less prolific spell, although his early-season exploits had already made the title outcome largely secure.
This incredible run was sufficient to earn Salah a new two-year contract at Liverpool and propel him into discussions for the Ballon d`Or, adding another layer of distinction to his already established legacy. Whether Salah can sustain this level for another two years remains a question for the future, but regardless of how his role evolves at Anfield, one thing is clear: as far as individual `last dances` go, this season was potentially as good as it gets.
Manchester City`s Unexpected Decline
Another factor that made Liverpool`s title triumph somewhat unexpected was the prevailing assumption that the trophy was Manchester City`s to lose. Pep Guardiola`s side entered the season on the back of four consecutive Premier League titles. While there were discussions about their ability to maintain that competitive edge for a fifth year, few predicted the extent of the drop-off they experienced this campaign.
Their season was initially impacted by Rodri`s ACL injury in September, but a series of poor results in the autumn revealed that the issues were more systemic than the absence of a single player. Guardiola himself publicly ruled them out of the title race before the new year, admitting there was `no chance` they could catch Liverpool, who were 14 points ahead in late December. He was proven right; City spent the final weeks of the season competing for a Champions League qualification spot, which wasn`t guaranteed in an exceptionally competitive league, partly fueled by their own uncharacteristic poor form.
City`s dip also coincided with a peculiar year across the board for many of the Premier League`s traditional top teams. Arsenal showed consistency, likely securing a third successive second-place finish, but they never mounted a serious challenge to Liverpool for the title. Chelsea, meanwhile, genuinely embodied a year of transition in their first season under manager Enzo Maresca. Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur endured unusually poor campaigns, resulting in them being consigned to bottom-half finishes. In a sense, Liverpool was the only team consistently performing at the necessary standard throughout, and because of that, they are undeniably deserving champions.
Arne Slot`s Immediate Positive Impact
If uncertainty was the defining theme surrounding Liverpool at the start of the season, Arne Slot was perhaps the personification of it. There was no doubt that the former Feyenoord boss had earned a job of this magnitude, having won the Eredivisie and KNVB Cup and established himself as a promising young manager in Europe. However, accounting for an adjustment period seemed reasonable, and Liverpool`s relatively quiet summer transfer window appeared to signal that the team wouldn`t be immediately reshaped to perfectly suit Slot`s tactical preferences.
Nevertheless, the new manager hit the ground running and quickly showcased his managerial style, even while working with a squad that still bore the hallmarks of Klopp`s approach. Slot successfully implemented a more pragmatic approach swiftly without sacrificing results. While his team averaged fewer shots than Klopp`s the previous year, the attacking output remained similar during the initial six months of the campaign. Even when facing more challenges in the latter half of the season, Slot clearly demonstrated his capability among Europe`s elite and is arguably one of the first of a new generation of managers to successfully make the leap to a top Premier League club.
New challenges await Slot starting next season; the difficulties encountered towards the end of this campaign highlight areas where Liverpool could benefit from reinforcements, which will naturally accelerate the transition from the Klopp era to the Slot era. What this latter period will ultimately look like is a significant question, and it makes Liverpool a fascinating team to follow in the years to come.
Dominic Ashworth