As frustrating as the start of the season had been for the Reds in terms of injuries and results, there was genuine belief that the six-week break for the World Cup would help give the club a chance to find the momentum that would inspire a charge for Champions League qualification.
Regrettably, it now feels slightly naive to have thought that after it was confirmed that Luis Diaz will be out for up to three months, having complained of pain in his knee whilst in training in Dubai. Essentially, this means that the club will have to heavily rely once more on the old guard of James Milner and Jordan Henderson to drive the team forward.
It’s worth saying that the 32-year-old Henderson had a very productive time in Qatar and played a crucial role in England's round of 16 win against Senegal. That was, of course, followed up by defeat to France in the quarter-finals, but the reality is that there’s little shame in losing to a team that are the favourites in the latest World Cup 2022 tips, with the experts predicting that Didier Deschamps’ men at a price of 11/10, will go all the way in the Middle East.
Will Milner and Henderson be able to drive the Reds up the league?
However, irrespective of how well Henderson performed at the World Cup as England fell short, it’s difficult to see how the Reds will be able to manage a top-four finish with him and Milner left to pull the strings in midfield.
Very Happy to be back pic.twitter.com/tElR5wfFDb
— Luis Fernando Díaz (@LuisFDiaz19) December 6, 2022
Keep in mind that Diogo Jota is only expected to return in early February after he suffered a calf injury and that Thiago Alcantara has only managed eight Premier League appearances this season following a string of injuries that have restricted the Spaniard to a stop-start campaign.
One step forward, two steps back
Essentially, the Reds are going to have to resume the season with the same team that has battled to find any consistency since the first game of the new term when the club drew to Fulham at Craven Cottage.
Since then, it has been a campaign that defies belief given that wins over Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur have been followed by defeats to Nottingham Forest and Leeds United. Yes, some may argue that there were signs of significant improvement before the World Cup break after the Reds won eight games of a possible ten in all competitions, but stats can be misleading when you take into account that these included wins over relegation-threatened Southampton, Rangers, and third-tier Derby County.
At least, there’s a legitimate reason to suspect that Jurgen Klopp’s charges aren’t out of the woods just yet even if they were able to get themselves to the sixth position in the Premier League at the time of the World Cup beginning.
Injury crisis will require Klopp to be at his tactical best
This is why, as initially touched on, the unprecedented mid-season World Cup in Qatar was initially seen as a blessing in disguise as it had the potential to give Liverpool a chance to enjoy a clean bill of health which would have, undoubtedly, given Klopp the playing personnel to begin hauling in the current top four.
“Then the news came, it was a proper smash in the face.”
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) December 12, 2022
Jürgen Klopp on finding out that Luis Díaz is going to be out injured for a further three months for Liverpool. pic.twitter.com/tzJwV3YdjJ
Of course, with a man of Klopp’s unquestionable intellect in the dugout and his unrivalled man management skills, there’s still a chance that the Reds can make admirable progress up the league when the season resumes on Boxing day. For this to happen, the German will have to be at his tactical best, or else Liverpool face the 2022/2023 campaign being 'one of those seasons.'
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