Liverpool know more than anyone how slim the margins can be between silverware and being left empty-handed, so much so that only four results would need to change to turn two trophies into six.
Playing the ‘what if’ game can be excruciating, a form of torture that we are opening ourselves up to as we reflect on what could have been with Jurgen Klopp.
The German has completed the set at Anfield, and his legacy will reverberate for generations, but if we could rewrite history there would be four matches we would turn to.
By doing so, one Premier League title and one Champions League trophy would turn to three apiece – all by changing just these four results…
Champions League finals vs. Real Madrid
The two Champions League final defeats against Real Madrid are obvious selections, change the two results and one European Cup turns into three.
The Reds’ run to the 2017/18 final was unexpected and that loss did catapult the team to lifting the trophy the following season, but imagine winning back-to-back titles?!
As for 2021/22, this was a team that had been chasing a historic quadruple, but a heroic man-of-the-match performance from Thibaut Courtois was what denied the Reds in Paris, with Real Madrid scoring from their one of only two shots on target.
From three finals and one trophy to three finals and three trophies, all by changing just two results…
Man City 2-1 Liverpool – January 2019
Only one point proved the difference between Liverpool and Man City in 2018/19, ensuring the defeat at the Etihad was the decisive result.
Roberto Firmino scored a team goal for the ages, but it was Leroy Sane who scored the winner after Sergio Aguero’s opener, and let’s not forget John Stones’ clearance just 11mm away from the goalline!
Changing this defeat into a win would have resulted in Liverpool winning the Premier League as invincibles and centurions – and even a draw would have been enough for the title.
And let’s not forget it would have been a Premier League and Champions League double…
Small, small margins!
Leicester 1-0 Liverpool – December 2021
It is astonishing that in a season with only two defeats it is still not good enough for the title – and that was again the case in 2021/22.
In truth, you could argue to change any one of the 10 games that saw Liverpool drop points in this campaign – including the two 2-2 draws against eventual winners Man City.
However, it is hard to look beyond the travesty that was the 1-0 defeat at Leicester, a team who were 10th at the time of the Reds’ visit and had no business turning us over.
Mohamed Salah missed a penalty early on to give Liverpool the lead, and ex-Everton man Ademola Lookman made sure to punish the costly error.
Alter this result to a victory and it is Liverpool winning the league by two points and ending the campaign with a treble.
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