Premier League: Why have Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp struggled so far in the 2022/23 season?

It isn't looking good for the Reds; they won two trophies last season and came close to winning two more. But this season, they’ve had the form of a mid-table club, and it shows; they are currently ninth in the league table.

It’s not where the club expected to find itself. The expectations were that they would kick on be Manchester City’s challengers again for the league this year. 

However, what’s transpired has been precisely the opposite. But why has that been the case so far this season? 

The first thing worth noting is that Liverpool’s players have been far too susceptible to individual errors so far this season, and many are out of form. 

Fabinho, Trent Alexander-Arnold, and Virgil van Dijk are among the club’s most solid and dependable performers, yet all three struggle for consistency and form. 

Fabinho’s ragged performances in midfield have left the side open while defending, and Virgil van Dijk’s errors at crucial moments haven’t helped. 

Indeed, Virgil van Dijk suffered his first-ever loss at Anfield as a Liverpool player, thanks to Leeds United’s dramatic late winner this weekend.     

And Trent Alexander-Arnold finds his place in England’s World Cup playing XI seriously under threat due to his defensive misgivings becoming even more evident this season. 

To a lesser extent, even the likes of Joe Gomez and Jordan Henderson have struggled, and it’s never easy for a team to be consistent when carrying so many players trying to find form. 

Nonetheless, mistakes of this magnitude are often indicative of a larger malaise - and in this case, the buck always stops with the manager, unfortunately, or otherwise. 

And Jurgen Klopp hasn’t been bereft of mistakes. He’s made several changes in both tactics and personnel in a bid to search for answers. But nothing has seemed to work. 

Murmurs of the German manager’s seven-year curse grow louder, but even if talk of that is overrated, what cannot be denied is that they look a side in need of inspiration. 

That inspiration will have to come from the manager – otherwise, he might find himself looking for a new job sooner rather than later. 

Of course, part of the blame also lies in the fact that the squad looks stale. Yes, new signings have been made, but they must fully integrate into the side. And this always makes the manager’s task that much more complicated. 

The good news for Jurgen Klopp is that the season is still young and that the club are assured of being part of the knockout stages of the Champions League. So, as things stand, it’s not all bad. 

But things can often turn worse when least expected in football, so the club will hope that this inconsistency is consigned to the bins soon. 

Otherwise, never mind a title tilt – even a run for a top-four finish might seem unlikely.