Last season's position: 6th
Crunchsports prediction for this season: 4th
Sixth last season and having played some wonderful football in the second half of the campaign under Kenny Dalglish, it's easy to forget that Liverpool were flirting with relegation around Christmas time.
Relegation was never likely on the cards, even under Roy Hodgson, but there's no doubting that the former Fulham boss was never going to achieve much at Anfield.
Dalglish worked wonders last season and after a busy summer in the transfer market, we can only see further improvements on the horizon at Anfield in the coming months and years.
The good:
- Tom Hicks and George Gillett are long gone and Liverpool have stability under new owner John W Henry, who has already backed his manager to the tune of around £100million since January.
- Kenny Dalglish.
- Charlie Adam and Stewart Downing will massively improve Liverpool's midfield.
The bad:
- Dalglish still has several players on huge wages who he needs to offload.
- Liverpool's defence needs to be strengthened.
What's needed this month at Liverpool:
- A quality defender (or two) will make Liverpool's push for a top four finish easier. Jose Enrique and Scott Dann or Gary Cahill would fit the bill nicely.
- A solid striker to provide back-up and competition for Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll would be a good addition, especially for the second half of the campaign when injuries and suspensions are more likely to play a part in Liverpool's season.
Can Liverpool win the title?
No, and any realistic Liverpool fan will agree.
But things are definitely going in the right direction at Anfield under Dalglish and Henry, who earlier this summer admitted his goal for the coming season was getting the club back into the Champions League.
"It's too early for us to talk about winning the league," Liverpool's principal owner said recently.
"Our main goal is to qualify for the Champions League. If we don't, it would be a major disappointment."
Given that Henry - who has backed Manchester United to win the league this season - has splashed out £100m on new players in less than a year (granted he has recouped £50m by selling Fernando Torres), failure to finish in the top four would be a huge disappointment.
While Liverpool still may lack some depth, they have some promising youngsters coming through the ranks, and that is in addition to the new signings made this summer.
Charlie Adam and Stewart Downing should add some extra quality to the midfield (and in Downing, Liverpool have a winger who has been consistent for several years now), while Dalglish has spent another £16m on Jordan Henderson, although how often he'll feature when both Adam and Steven Gerrard are available remains to be seen.
There will be a lot of pressure on Gerrard, as well as Suarez and Carroll, to put in good performances throughout the season. If that happens, a top four finish looks likely, although Dalglish will need to ensure his back four stop leaking goals, which has been a problem in pre-season
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