How Do We Remember This Season?
This year has been a rotten one. No league challenge, no trophies to play for. No real cup run to speak of. There is an impending sense of doom around. Champions League qualification looks like a distant dream. After having it so good last season, we’ve come crashing back to Earth with a bang. However, when the compilation videos are made and we look back on this season in ten years’ time, how bad will it really look then?
READ MORE: To Europe Or Not To Europe? by Adam Beattie
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We won the Community Shield with a classy performance against Manchester City and the omen for the season looked positive. Winning 9-0 at home to Bournemouth followed by an injury-time winner late into the night against Newcastle was another glorious Anfield moment. Who will forget the performance at home to City following a 7-1 UCL victory away to Glasgow Rangers? Our mighty Reds also won 6-1 away to Leeds and our latest 4-3 instant classic with Spurs.
The Silver Lining
Despite all of that good, the reality is this season will be remembered for one reason and one reason alone. We remember seasons for trophies, cup finals, and big goals. We remember them for moments and even more so when those moments come against our biggest rivals.
That is why the 7-0 victory against Manchester United will be the enduring image in our minds when we talk about this campaign. To be fair, I don’t think we’ll let United fans forget it either. As challenging as this season has been, that one day will forever bring a collective smile to Liverpool fans’ faces. The Red Devils will likely finish ahead of us and claim one of the final top-four spots. Even with that fact, we have many reasons to be optimistic. The gulf in class on that day was evident for all to see. It has been a long time since Man U last won the league and right now they may be as far away as ever even with their miniature “revival.”
A Season Of Duality
The biggest challenge for us this season has been consistency. Our away form has been brutal with dropped points against many a so-called “smaller” club. Brentford, Brighton, Forest, Wolves, Bournemouth, and Leeds alone are fixtures we would expect to win comfortably, even away from Anfield. Yet in 2022-23, we lost to all of those clubs in the league. Even if we had won all those contests, we would still likely consider it to be a poor season, yet the gulf between us and Arsenal/City would be significantly reduced. Don’t fall into the trap of believing those two clubs are so far ahead of everyone else. A few signings and increased consistency will ensure we are right back to challenge them next year.
In the meantime, sit back and enjoy those seven wonderful moments of joy on that amazing day versus Manchester United!
