Our Number 20’s Liverpool Swan Song?
It’s been roughly one week since Virgil van Dijk lifted league title number 20 for the Reds. While I’m certain the smell of champagne and good vibes remain for a large majority of Liverpool fans, it’s hard not to look too far ahead to next season. Given the recent transfer reports, the Reds are poised for arguably their biggest summer in recent memory.
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Jeremie Frimpong has been signed, with the Dutchman looking to slot in the vacant right-back role alongside Conor Bradley. With the deals for Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez and dynamic Leverkusen midfielder Florian Wirtz reportedly close to being completed, Liverpool certainly aren’t resting on their laurels. When it comes to bolstering their squad for a title defense next season, Arne Slot looks to build this Liverpool squad in his desired image.
But shifting away a bit from title number 20, to talking about our number 20. Diogo Jota has been a key player in the Liverpool team over the past few years. His tenacity and clinical finishing are integral to us. This season, though, presents his worst as a Liverpool player. His six league goals and three assists in 26 appearances are his worst tallies in three years. He netted ten goals and provided three assists in 2023/24. Seven goals and four assists were the return in 2022/23. Jota made 21 and 22 appearances in those campaigns, respectively. What’s happened to our Portuguese gunman, and are his days as a Liverpool player numbered?
Square Peg In A Round Hole?
Entering last season, it was always about who Arne Slot would deem most suitable for his style of play. This was even more important considering that the squad was still 99% assembled by Jurgen Klopp. Jota was initially deemed the first-choice striker to start the season and played decently. Injuries eventually hit, and he was replaced by Luis Diaz. This arguably led to Liverpool’s most impressive run of results this season.
In those Diaz starts down the middle, Liverpool bested Bayer Leverkusen 4-0 and Real Madrid 2-0 in the Champions League. They handled Manchester City 2-0 at Anfield in the league. Unfortunately, since Jota made his return to the starting eleven during the final stretch of the season, his effectiveness waned considerably. He scored just one solitary goal and assisted once in his last thirteen Liverpool appearances. Slot opted to bring back Diaz at that striker role to close out the season. But with the Colombian being a natural winger and less effective in the middle, it really says a lot about how far Jota has fallen.
A Sharp Decline
As mentioned earlier, there was a period in the 2023/24 season where you could argue that Liverpool’s coming short in their title challenge was in part due to them missing Jota’s clinical finishing. Nowadays, even that has seemed to have deserted our number 20. According to StatMuse, he’s only had a conversion rate of 11.8% in 2024/25. That pales in comparison to 24.4% in 2023/24 and 20.0% in 2022/23.
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With his most valuable skill found wanting, and his physical traits noticeably declining, that combined for a very rough 2024/25 for Jota. He did play his part in the league title win, though. Jota produced winning goals against Crystal Palace and Everton. He also had key goals to salvage points for Liverpool against Fulham and Forest. Despite those contributions, however, it’s clear that more is needed from that position if the Reds are to retain their Premier League title next season.
So Long, Farewell?
Being that it was Arne Slot’s first season as Liverpool manager, it seemed that it was an audition of sorts for the players as to who could be regulars once the Dutchman fully establishes his style of play on the team. This meant that performances throughout the season carried significant weight. They would very much determine who would be playing in a red shirt next season. In short, Jota’s worst Liverpool season couldn’t have come at a worse time. I believe that Liverpool should look to cash in with a sensible fee from an interested club.
Liverpool’s ownership and front office have always prided themselves on smart transfer business. Their record of selling players who are in decline has been impeccable over the last few seasons. This looks, more likely than not, to be the best possible course for the Reds. There are such high stakes to remaining at the top of the Premier League pecking order. No matter what happens, though, Jota gave his all in a Liverpool shirt. At his best, Diogo Jota was one of the best natural finishers the club has seen. I’ll be rooting for him, whether he’s putting on that Liverpool shirt or otherwise.